Coexistence of Pulmonary and Cerebral Arteriovenous Malformations in a Male Adult

Abstract

The coexistence of cerebral and pulmonary arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) is very rare, even in patients with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT). Through a lack of awareness of this condition and inattentive screening, physicians may miss pulmonary AVMs or treat them as other conditions. We report herein a case of concurrent solitary pulmonary AVM and cerebral AVM in a male adult. The patient first presented with neurological symptoms and was subjected to a craniotomy and resection of the cerebral AVM. Neurological symptoms showed no improvement after removal of the cerebral AVM. A pulmonary nodule was found about one year after brain surgery. Pulmonary AVM was diagnosed by chest sonography with Doppler and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) of thorax, and was confirmed by surgical resection. This case illustrates the importance of screening for the presence of pulmonary AVM5 in patients with visceral vascular malformations or HHT.