Stereotactic Radiosurgery Guidelines for the Management of Patients with Intracranial Dural Arteriovenous Fistulas

Author(s):  
Ajay Niranjan ◽  
L. Dade Lunsford
2001 ◽  
Vol 94 (6) ◽  
pp. 886-891 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan A. Friedman ◽  
Bruce E. Pollock ◽  
Douglas A. Nichols ◽  
Deborah A. Gorman ◽  
Robert L. Foote ◽  
...  

Object. Most dural arteriovenous fistulas (DAVFs) of the transverse and sigmoid sinuses do not have angiographically demonstrated features associated with intracranial hemorrhage and, therefore, may be treated nonsurgically. The authors report their experience using a staged combination of radiosurgery and transarterial embolization for treating DAVFs involving the transverse and sigmoid sinuses. Methods. Between 1991 and 1998, 25 patients with DAVFs of the transverse and/or sigmoid sinuses were treated using stereotactic radiosurgery; 22 of these patients also underwent transarterial embolization. Two patients were lost to follow-up review. Clinical data, angiographic findings, and follow-up records for the remaining 23 patients were collected prospectively. The mean duration of clinical follow up after radiosurgery was 50 months (range 20–99 months). The 18 women and five men included in this series had a mean age of 57 years (range 33–79 years). Twenty-two (96%) of 23 patients presented with pulsatile tinnitus as the primary symptom; two patients had experienced an earlier intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). Cognard classifications of the DAVFs included the following: I in 12 patients (52%), IIa in seven patients (30%), and III in four patients (17%). After treatment, symptoms resolved (20 patients) or improved significantly (two patients) in 96% of patients. One patient was clinically unchanged. No patient sustained an ICH or irradiation-related complication during the follow-up period. Seventeen patients underwent follow-up angiographic studies at a mean of 21 months after radiosurgery (range 11–38 months). Total or near-total obliteration (> 90%) was seen in 11 patients (65%), and more than a 50% reduction in six patients (35%). Two patients experienced recurrent tinnitus and underwent repeated radiosurgery and embolization at 21 and 38 months, respectively, after the first procedure. Conclusions. A staged combination of radiosurgery and transarterial embolization provides excellent symptom relief and a good angiographically verified cure rate for patients harboring low-risk DAVFs of the transverse and sigmoid sinuses. This combined approach is a safe and effective treatment strategy for patients without angiographically determined risk factors for hemorrhage and for elderly patients with significant comorbidities.


2019 ◽  
Vol 130 (3) ◽  
pp. 972-976 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel A. Tonetti ◽  
Bradley A. Gross ◽  
Brian T. Jankowitz ◽  
Hideyuki Kano ◽  
Edward A. Monaco ◽  
...  

OBJECTIVEAggressive dural arteriovenous fistulas (dAVFs) with cortical venous drainage (CVD) are known for their relatively high risk of recurrent neurological events or hemorrhage. However, recent natural history literature has indicated that nonaggressive dAVFs with CVD have a significantly lower prospective risk of hemorrhage. These nonaggressive dAVFs are typically diagnosed because of symptomatic headache, pulsatile tinnitus, or ocular symptoms, as in low-risk dAVFs. Therefore, the viability of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS) as a treatment for this lesion subclass should be investigated.METHODSThe authors evaluated their institutional experience with SRS for dAVFs with CVD for the period from 1991 to 2016, assessing angiographic outcomes and posttreatment hemorrhage rates. They subsequently pooled their results with those published in the literature and stratified the results based on the mode of clinical presentation.RESULTSIn an institutional cohort of 42 dAVFs with CVD treated using SRS, there were no complications or hemorrhages after treatment in 19 patients with nonaggressive dAVFs, but there was 1 radiation-induced complication and 1 hemorrhage among the 23 patients with aggressive dAVFs. In pooling these cases with 155 additional cases from the literature, the authors found that the hemorrhage rate after SRS was significantly lower among the patients with nonaggressive dAVFs (0% vs 6.8%, p = 0.003). Similarly, the number of radiation-related complications was 0/124 in nonaggressive dAVF cases versus 6/73 in aggressive dAVF cases (p = 0.001). The annual rate of hemorrhage after SRS for aggressive fistulas was 3.0% over 164.5 patient-years, whereas none of the nonaggressive fistulas bled after radiosurgery over 279.4 patient-years of follow-up despite the presence of CVD.CONCLUSIONSCortical venous drainage is thought to be a significant risk factor in all dAVFs. In the institutional experience described here, SRS proved to be a low-risk strategy associated with a very low risk of subsequent hemorrhage or radiation-related complications in nonaggressive dAVFs with CVD.


2017 ◽  
Vol 107 ◽  
pp. 371-375 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel A. Tonetti ◽  
Bradley A. Gross ◽  
Brian T. Jankowitz ◽  
Kyle M. Atcheson ◽  
Hideyuki Kano ◽  
...  

2002 ◽  
Vol 96 (5) ◽  
pp. 823-829 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Hung-chi Pan ◽  
Wen-yuh Chung ◽  
Wan-yuo Guo ◽  
Hsiu-mei Wu ◽  
Kang-du Liu ◽  
...  

Object. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and safety of radiosurgery for the treatment of dural arteriovenous fistulas (DAVFs) located in the region of the transverse—sigmoid sinus. Methods. A series of 20 patients with DAVFs located in the transverse—sigmoid sinus, who were treated with gamma knife surgery between June 1995 and June 2000, was evaluated. According to the Cognard classification, the DAVF was Type I in four patients, Type IIa in seven, Type IIb in two, and combined Type IIa+b in seven. Nine patients had previously been treated with surgery and/or embolization, whereas 11 patients underwent radiosurgery alone. Radiosurgery was performed using multiple-isocenter irradiation of the delineated DAVF nidus. The target volume ranged from 1.7 to 40.7 cm3. The margin dose delivered to the nidus ranged from 16.5 to 19 Gy at a 50 to 70% isodose level. Nineteen patients were available for follow-up review, the duration of which ranged from 6 to 58 months (median 19 months). Of the 19 patients, 14 (74%) were cured of their symptoms. At follow up, magnetic resonance imaging and/or angiography demonstrated complete obliteration of the DAVF in 11 patients (58%), subtotal obliteration (95% reduction of the nidus) in three (16%), and partial obliteration in another five (26%). There was no neurological complication related to the treatment. One patient experienced a recurrence of the DAVF 18 months after angiographic confirmation of total obliteration, and underwent a second course of radiosurgery. Conclusions. Stereotactic radiosurgery provides a safe and effective option for the treatment of DAVFs involving the transverse and sigmoid sinuses. For some aggressive DAVFs with extensive retrograde cortical venous drainage, however, a combination of endovascular embolization and surgery may be necessary.


Neurosurgery ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 67 (5) ◽  
pp. 1276-1285 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huai-che Yang ◽  
Hideyuki Kano ◽  
Douglas Kondziolka ◽  
Ajay Niranjan ◽  
John C Flickinger ◽  
...  

Abstract BACKGROUND: Treatment options for dural arteriovenous fistulas (DAVFs) have expanded with the application of stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS). OBJECTIVE: To assess the role of SRS with or without embolization, we reviewed our entire DAVF experience. METHODS: Between 1991 and 2006, 40 patients with 44 DAVFs underwent Gamma knife SRS. Twenty-eight patients had upfront SRS before or after embolization and 12 patients underwent delayed SRS for recurrent or residual DAVFs after initial embolization. The median patient age was 60 years (range, 29-90). DAVFs were diagnosed in 7 patients after they sustained an intracranial hemorrhage. The median SRS target volume was 2.0 mL (range, 0.2-8.2 mL) and the median marginal dose was 21.0 Gy (range, 15-25 Gy). RESULTS: At a median follow-up of 45 months (range, 23-116 mo), a total of 28 patients (harboring 32 DAVFs) had obliteration confirmed by imaging. We found a 83% obliteration rate in patients who had upfront SRS with embolization and a 67% obliteration rate in patients who only had SRS. One patient died of an intracerebral hemorrhage 2 months after SRS. Cavernous carotid fistulas were associated with higher rates of occlusion (P = .012) and symptom improvement (P = .010) than were transverse-sigmoid sinus-related fistulas. CONCLUSION: When upfront SRS is possible in conjunction with embolization, successful DAVF obliteration is possible in most patients, especially those with carotid cavernous fistulas. SRS should target the entire fistula regardless of whether it precedes or follows embolization. In selected patients with a small-volume, low-risk DAVF, SRS alone is an effective treatment option in most patients.


2017 ◽  
Vol 159 (6) ◽  
pp. 1093-1103 ◽  
Author(s):  
Seong-Hyun Park ◽  
Ki-Su Park ◽  
Dong-Hun Kang ◽  
Jeong-Hyun Hwang ◽  
Sung-Kyoo Hwang

2015 ◽  
Vol 122 (2) ◽  
pp. 353-362 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ching-Jen Chen ◽  
Cheng-Chia Lee ◽  
Dale Ding ◽  
Robert M. Starke ◽  
Srinivas Chivukula ◽  
...  

OBJECT The goal of this study was to evaluate the obliteration rate of intracranial dural arteriovenous fistulas (DAVFs) in patients treated with stereotactic radiosurgery (SRS), and to compare obliteration rates between cavernous sinus (CS) and noncavernous sinus (NCS) DAVFs, and between DAVFs with and without cortical venous drainage (CVD). METHODS A systematic literature review was performed using PubMed. The CS DAVFs and the NCS DAVFs were categorized using the Barrow and Borden classification systems, respectively. The DAVFs were also categorized by location and by the presence of CVD. Statistical analyses of pooled data were conducted to assess complete obliteration rates in CS and NCS DAVFs, and in DAVFs with and without CVD. RESULTS Nineteen studies were included, comprising 729 patients harboring 743 DAVFs treated with SRS. The mean obliteration rate was 63% (95% CI 52.4%–73.6%). Complete obliteration for CS and NCS DAVFs was achieved in 73% and 58% of patients, respectively. No significant difference in obliteration rates between CS and NCS DAVFs was found (OR 1.72, 95% CI 0.66–4.46; p = 0.27). Complete obliteration in DAVFs with and without CVD was observed in 56% and 75% of patients, respectively. A significantly higher obliteration rate was observed in DAVFs without CVD compared with DAVFs with CVD (OR 2.37, 95% CI 1.07–5.28; p = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS Treatment with SRS offers favorable rates of DAVF obliteration with low complication rates. Patients harboring DAVFs that are refractory or not amenable to endovascular or surgical therapy may be safely and effectively treated using SRS.


2021 ◽  
pp. 109-122
Author(s):  
Cheng-Chia Lee ◽  
Huai-Che Yang ◽  
Yong-Sin Hu ◽  
Chung-Jung Lin ◽  
Hsiu-Mei Wu ◽  
...  

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