[MRT morphology and classification of cerebral cavernomas]

An MRI review of 54 histologically verified cavernomas allowed the introduction of a system classifying this cavernous venous malformation into four types: type I (20%) corresponds to the classic morphology of a cavernoma without hemorrhage; type II (67%) is characterized by intralesional hemorrhage; type III (11%) is associated with an extra-lesional hemorrhage that compresses or displaces the cavernoma itself; and type IV (2%) corresponds to a totally calcified cavernoma. These variable cavernoma types represent different possible stages of the natural evolution of a cavernoma and limit the differential diagnosis, especially in the group of occult or cryptic cerebral vascular malformations.