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Updated: May 18, 2026
Comprehensive Endovascular and Open Surgical Management of Cerebral Arteriovenous Malformations
Published on: October 20, 2017
Surgical resection of cavernous malformations of the brainstem: evolution of a minimally invasive technique
Jeffrey C Mai1, Dinesh Ramanathan, Louis J Kim
1Department of Neurosurgery, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA.
Objective:
The purpose of this study is to provide an institutional retrospective review of surgically treated brainstem cavernous malformations.
Methods:
Between 2005 and 2010, 22 consecutive patients with brainstem cavernous malformations (15 female and 7 male) with a mean age of 43 years underwent surgical treatment. Mean volume of the resected cavernous malformations was 0.65 cm(3). A minimally invasive resection technique was used for these cases, in conjunction with skull base approaches.
Results:
The mean follow-up period was 26.6 months (range, 4-68 months). Of the 22 patients, 9% did not have clear evidence of hemorrhage at the time of presentation. Of the remainder, 22% had two or more instances of hemorrhage documented by magnetic resonance imaging. After resection and during follow-up, 54% of patients had an improvement in their modified Rankin scale, whereas 14% were worse compared with their preoperative presentation; 32% were unchanged and 9% of patients were found to have residual cavernoma post-surgery.
Conclusion:
Our longitudinal experience has guided us to emphasize minimally invasive approaches during resection of the brainstem cavernous malformations, occasionally at the expense of achieving a complete resection, to improve patient outcomes.
