[Arteriovenous malformations in children: a report of four cases]

(Malformaciones arteriovenosas en la infancia: a proposito de cuatro casos.)

Full Abstract

INTRODUCTION

AND AIMS:
Vascular malformations are the most frequent cause of intracranial haemorrhage (IH) after the neonatal period that are not due to traumatic injury. Arteriovenous malformations (AVM) are the vascular malformations that most often give rise to symptoms in infancy and are the most common cause of IH in children over one year of age.

CASE REPORTS:
We reviewed the medical records of all patients under the age of 16 years diagnosed with AVM from the year 2000 to the present. Four cases aged between 7 and 15 years were found, all of whom were examined with computerised tomography and/or magnetic resonance imaging and cerebral arteriography scans. One patient started with headaches and another had learning disabilities. The other two began with IH, the most common clinical manifestations of which were a diminished level of awareness and vomiting. The final diagnosis was established by means of arteriography in all cases. Surgical treatment was carried out in three cases (using surgery, catheter embolisation and stereotaxic radiosurgery) and the patients' progress following the intervention was excellent.

CONCLUSIONS:
Spontaneous haemorrhage constitutes the most common presenting symptom of AVM. However, there are sometimes earlier manifestations that are a challenge to diagnosis and which should be the target of future research, since preventing IH would lead to a drastic reduction in the morbidity and mortality rate of AVM.

Learn Faster Today Improve your study skills

Author information

Author/s: Martin Fernandez-Mayoralas, D (D); Munoz-Jareno, N (N); Santos-Martin, E (E); Mendez-Montero, J (J); Saiz-Ayala, A (A); Saldana, C J (CJ); Campos-Castello, J (J);

Affiliation: Servico de Neuropediatría, Hospital Clinico San Carlos, 28040 Madrid, Espana. dmfmayor(-atsign-)yahoo.es

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Case Reports; English Abstract; Journal Article

Journal: Revista de neurologia (Rev Neurol), published in Spain. (Language: spa)

Reference: -2006 Sep 1-15; vol 43 (issue 5) : pp 275-9

Dates: Created 2006/08/30; Completed 2007/04/26;

PMID: 16941425, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 12/26/2008)

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article (including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.

MeSH headings (categories)

This article was linked to the MESH Headings shown below.

Adolescent
Arteriovenous Malformations - diagnosis; pathology; physiopathology; surgery
Cerebral Angiography
Child
Female

These are the highest related articles currently in the database:

See 100+ related articles.