Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia patient presenting with brain abscess due to silent pulmonary arteriovenous malformation

Abstract

Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia is a rare autosomal dominant inherited disease that is usually complicated by visceral vascular malformations. Patients harboring such malformations are at increased risk of brain abscess formation, which despite advances in diagnostic and surgical methods remains a life threatening medical emergency with high mortality and morbidity rates. In the present report we describe a case of cerebral abscess due to silent pulmonary arteriovenous malformation (AVM) in a young patient previously undiagnosed for hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia syndrome (HHT).

Keywords

• hereditary hemorrhagic teleangiectasia
• brain abscess
• arteriovenous malformation