104 Stereotactic Radiosurgery for Spetzler-Martin Grade IV and V Arteriovenous Malformations

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Abstract INTRODUCTION Due to the complexity of Spetzler-Martin (SM) grade IV-V arteriovenous malformations (AVM), the management of these lesions remains controversial. The aims of this multicenter, retrospective study are to evaluate outcomes after single-session stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) for SM grade IV-V AVMs and determine predictive factors. METHODS We pooled data from 233 patients (mean age 33 years) with SM grade IV (94.4%) or V AVMs (5.6%) treated with single-session SRS at eight participating centers in the International Gamma Knife Research Foundation. Pre-SRS embolization was performed in 71 AVMs (30.5%). The mean nidus volume, SRS margin dose, and follow-up duration were 9.7 cc, 17.3 Gy, and 84.5 months, respectively. RESULTS >At a mean follow-up interval of 84.5 months, favorable outcome was defined as AVM obliteration, no post-SRS hemorrhage, and no permanently symptomatic radiation-induced changes (RIC) and was achieved in 26.2% of patients. The actuarial obliteration rates at 3, 7, 10, and 12 years were 15%, 34%, 37% and 42%, respectively. The annual post-SRS hemorrhage rate was 3.0%. Symptomatic and permanent RIC occurred in 10.7% and 4% of the patients, respectively. Only larger AVM diameter (P = 0.04) found to be an independent predictor of unfavorable outcome in the multivariate logistic regression analysis. The rate of favorable outcome was significantly lower for unruptured SM grade IV-V AVMs compared to ruptured ones (P = 0.042). Prior embolization was a negative independent predictor of AVM obliteration (P = 0.024) and radiologically evident RIC (P = 0.05) in multivariate analyses. CONCLUSION In this multi-institutional study, single session SRS had limited efficacy in the management of SM grade IV-V AVMs Favorable outcome was only achieved in a minority of unruptured SM grade IV-V AVMs, which supports less frequent utilization of SRS for the management of these lesions. A volume staged SRS approach for large AVMs represents an alternative approach for high grade AVM’s, but it requires further investigation.