Intracerebral arteriovenous malformation fed by the anterior ethmoidal artery--case report

A 66-year-old male presented with a left frontal intracerebral arteriovenous malformation (AVM) fed by the anterior ethmoidal artery. The nidus was located intracerebrally, although the feeder was a dural artery, and was drained by the ascending frontal vein which showed varicose dilatation. The AVM was associated with an unruptured right anterior choroidal artery aneurysm. The AVM was removed and the aneurysm was clipped in a two-stage operation. The etiology of AVMs fed by the ethmoidal artery is still uncertain, but is probably due to a disturbance in normal embryonic development. The association with aneurysm seemed to be incidental.