Spinal arteriovenous fistulae: surgical management

Spinal vascular malformations include several types of pathologic entities with multiple variations in their neurologic presentation and risks. Spinal dural arteriovenous fistulae (SDAVF) are the most frequent type, and account for 70% of all lesions affecting the spinal cord. The nonspecific early neurologic symptoms of SDAVF often make early diagnosis of this clinical entity challenging, and a delay in diagnosis or appropriate treatment often has devastating consequences on spinal cord function. The lesion can invariably be obliterated with surgical occlusion of the intradural arterialized venous reflux, and progression of neurologic deficits is usually arrested and sometimes reversed.