Pathogenesis of non-hereditary brain arteriovenous malformation and therapeutic implications

Brain arteriovenous malformations have a high risk of intracranial hemorrhage, which is a substantial cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with brain arteriovenous malformations. Although a variety of genetic factors leading to hereditary brain arteriovenous malformations have been extensively investigated, their pathogenesis is still not well elucidated, especially in sporadic brain arteriovenous malformations. The authors have reviewed the updated data of not only the genetic aspects of sporadic brain arteriovenous malformations, but also the architecture of microvasculature, the roles of the angiogenic factors, and the signaling pathways. This knowledge may allow us to infer the pathogenesis of sporadic brain arteriovenous malformations and develop pre-emptive treatments for them.