Clinical and angiographic results of long-term follow-up of patients after endovascular treatment for spinal arteriovenous malformations

Abstract

Objective – to evaluate long-term results of treatment of patients with arteriovenous malformations AVM of the spinal cord. Materials and methods. A retrospective analysis of clinical and angiographic data of the results of treatment of patients with spinal AVM for the period from 2005 to 2019 was conducted. In SO «Scientific-Practical Center of Endovascular Neuroradiology NAMS of Ukraine» 47 patients were operated on endovascular method. The age of patients ranged from 11 to 62 years (middle age is 45.3 years). There were 29 men (61.7 %), 18 women (38.3 %). Liquid cyanoacrylate embolizant was used for endovascular intervention. The operations were performed with transfemoral access. Accoding the classification proposed by Anson and Spetzler in 1992 patients with type I were 31 (65.9 %), with ІІ type – 8 (17.0 %), with ІIІ type – 5 (10.6 %), with IV type – 3 (6.4 %). Magnetic resonance tomography and spinal angiography were used for diagnostics AVM. Results. Total exclusion of AVM from the bloodstream was achieved in 22 (46.8 %) cases. Out of the 31 (65.9 %) patients with type I AVM, 17 (54.8 %) had an early transient deepening of the neurological deficit. In this group, complete dissection of arteriovenous fistula was achieved in 16 (51.6 %) patients. In 8 (17.0 %) patients with type II AVM, complete exclusion of AVM was achieved in 5 (62.5 %) cases. In this case, 6 (75.0 %) patients were observed early postoperative deepening of neurological symptoms. In 5 (10.6 %) patients with type III AVM, total exclusion was achieved in 1 (20.0 %) case. Transient deepening of neurological deficit was noted in 3 (60.0 %) patients. In 3 (75.0 %) patients with type IV AVM, total embolization was achieved in 1 (33.0 %) observation. Neurological impairment occurred in 1 (33.0 %) patient. In all groups there were no fatalities. Conclusions. Angiography is the gold standard of diagnosis and dynamic monitoring of patients with spinal cord AVM. The use of endovascular treatment of AVM can stop the further progression of neurological deficits, which, however, is not always associated with the total exclusion of AVM. The best neurological improvement and total exclusion were achieved in patients with type I AVM. Radicality, efficacy and deepening of neurological deficiency depend on angioarchitectonics of AVM. The main condition for carrying out embolization is to achieve a safe level of catheterization of the afferent.

Keywords

• spinal arteriovenous malformation; arteriovenous fistula; neurological deterioration; spinal angiography.