[Three cases of arteriovenous malformation of the lung]

Three cases of arteriovenous malformation (AVM) of the lung are presented. The first patient was 36-year-old female and the second was 25-year-old male, and both with asymptomatic bilateral multiple small AVMs. We used coil spring occlusion in therapeutic transcatheter embolization of the AVMs. A pulmonary arteriogram confirmed the completely occluded AVMs. The another patient was 21-year-old female whose lips and nails were cyanotic. She had clubbing fingers and vascular murmur was audible on her chest wall. The laboratory examination revealed polycythemia and hypoxemia. A pulmonary angiogram revealed a single large AVM which was composed of a feeding artery (A9) and a draining vein (dilated basal pulmonary vein). We performed a left basal segmentectomy and postoperative course was uneventful. Transcatheter embolization is useful for the case of multiple or peripheral or small AVM of the lung, but the case of large solitary AVM with rapid blood flow is thought to be an indication for the operation. These two therapeutic modality should be selected case by case.