A single-institution study of predisposing factors of patients with BAVMs to flow-related aneurysm

Abstract

Background and purpose: The goal of this study was to assess the potential risk factors leading to flow-related aneurysm (FA) formation in patients with brain arteriovenous malformations (BAVMs) in Taiwanese. Methods: We recruited 890 patients with BAVMs: 72 had FA(s) and 818 did not. Several factors were assessed including patient's age, gender, BAVM volume and location, and Spetzler-Martin grade. Results: The 890 patients with BAVM had a mean age of 30 years (range: 2–84), mean BAVM volume of 10.6 mL (range: 0.13–91.4). BAVMs were ruptured in 42% of patients. Compared to BAVM patients without FAs, the 72 patients with FAs had older age (mean 41 yrs vs 31 yrs, p < 0.001); larger average BAVM volume (39.6 mL vs 16.1 mL, p < 0.001). No statistical significance in Spetzler-Martin grades (χ2 value = 8.687 and p = 0.122) was found in terms of formation of FA. FA demonstrated similar gender distribution and BAVM location distribution (the χ2-value was 0.242 and 0.812, respectively). Conclusion: Patients with older age and large BAVM volume are more prone to FA. Gender, BAVM location, and BAVM grade are not statistically significant predisposing factors for FA. Keywords: Brain arteriovenous malformation, Flow-related aneurysm, Predisposing factor