Diffuse Cerebral Edema and Impending Herniation Complicating Hepatic Encephalopathy in Hereditary Hemorrhagic

Charisma Mylavarapu1, Alexander J Lu1, Ethan A Burns2

  • 1Houston Methodist Department of Medicine, Houston Methodist Hospital, 6550 Fannin St, Suite 1001, Houston, TX 77030, USA.

Case Reports in Medicine
|February 28, 2022
PubMed

Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is an autosomal dominant vascular disease characterized by the formation of cutaneous and visceral telangiectasias and arteriovenous malformations (AVM). Multiple organs may be affected, including the nasal mucosa, skin, lungs, gastrointestinal tract, and brain. The following case highlights a unique manifestation of HHT in a patient with a gastrointestinal hemorrhage and epistaxis, resulting in hyperammonemia and diffuse cerebral edema and herniation. Clinicians should be aware of this potential complication in such patients and initiate ammonia-reducing agents early to avoid this devastating consequence.