Spontaneous obliteration of brain arteriovenous malformations: illustrative cases

Abstract

BACKGROUND Spontaneous angiographic obliteration of a brain arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is considered a rare outcome, with most cases in the literature related to prior hemorrhage in small brain AVMs. The authors present a prospective, single center, consecutive case series. The clinical course and radiographic features of four cases with spontaneous obliteration of brain AVM were analyzed. OBSERVATIONS The median age of patients in this series was 47.6 years, with an equal gender split. The median maximum brain AVM diameter was 2 cm. The median time to spontaneous obliteration was 26 months, with hemorrhage preceding this in three out of four cases and a prolonged latency in the only case with a nidus size larger than 3 cm and no hemorrhage. LESSONS The present study provides additional information to allow clinicians to counsel patients about the rare outcomes of conservative management. This work extends our understanding of when this phenomenon can occur by reporting on the differences associated with spontaneous obliteration of larger AVMs.