Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2015 Sep 28;6(Suppl 15):S399-401.
doi: 10.4103/2152-7806.166174. eCollection 2015.

Imaging the spontaneous obliteration of a cerebral arteriovenous malformation using c-arm cone beam computed tomography: A case report

Maria Braileanu  1 , Wuyang Yang  2 , Justin M Caplan  2 , Judy Huang  2
Affiliations
Case Reports

Imaging the spontaneous obliteration of a cerebral arteriovenous malformation using c-arm cone beam computed tomography: A case report

Maria Braileanu et al. Surg Neurol Int. .

Abstract

Background: Spontaneous occlusion of a cerebral arteriovenous malformation (AVM) without treatment is a rare occurrence.

Case description: We report the case of a 56-year-old male who presented with aphasia and right hemiparesis secondary to intracerebral and intraventricular hemorrhage. Diagnostic digital subtraction angiography (DSA) and c-arm cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) demonstrated a 5 mm Spetzler-Martin Grade III left thalamic AVM drained by the internal cerebral vein. Subsequent DSA and CBCT studies confirmed the spontaneous obliteration of the AVM.

Conclusions: In this case, CBCT provided high resolution imaging of the AVM. Future clinical use of CBCT as an adjunct to DSA may enhance the diagnostic and therapeutic imaging of vascular lesions.

Keywords: Arteriovenous malformation; c-arm cone beam computed tomography; digital subtraction angiography.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Initial head computed tomography (a: Axial view) and brain magnetic resonance imaging (b: Axial T1-weighted; c: Axial T2-weighted) show a left thalamic intracerebral hemorrhage with ventricular extension and no discernible flow voids to suggest an arteriovenous malformation
Figure 2
Figure 2
The arteriovenous malformation (AVM) nidus (arrowhead), seen on lateral digital subtraction angiography (a, b and c) and three-dimensional sagittal (d) and coronal (e and f) cone beam computed tomography reconstructions (left carotid injections), is fed by the left anterior choroidal artery (hollow arrow) and a thalamic perforator branch of the left posterior communicating artery (right vertebral injection, not shown), and drained by the left internal cerebral vein (solid arrow). (a) Hematoma obscures the nidus at presentation, (b, d and e) 3 months follow-up reveals the AVM, and (c and f) 7 months follow-up demonstrates complete spontaneous AVM obliteration
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Abdulrauf SI, Malik GM, Awad IA. Spontaneous angiographic obliteration of cerebral arteriovenous malformations. Neurosurgery. 1999;44:280–7. - PubMed
    1. Lee SK, Vilela P, Willinsky R, TerBrugge KG. Spontaneous regression of cerebral arteriovenous malformations: Clinical and angiographic analysis with review of the literature. Neuroradiology. 2002;44:11–6. - PubMed
    1. Mizutani T, Tanaka H, Aruga T. Total recanalization of a spontaneously thrombosed arteriovenous malformation. Case report. J Neurosurg. 1995;82:506–8. - PubMed
    1. Panciani PP, Fontanella M, Carlino C, Bergui M, Ducati A. Progressive spontaneous occlusion of a cerebellar AVM: Pathogenetic hypothesis and review of literature. Clin Neurol Neurosurg. 2008;110:502–10. - PubMed
    1. Patel MC, Hodgson TJ, Kemeny AA, Forster DM. Spontaneous obliteration of pial arteriovenous malformations: A review of 27 cases. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2001;22:531–6. - PMC - PubMed

Publication types