Arteriovenous Malformation

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Arteriovenous Malformation

An arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is an abnormal tangle of blood vessels in the brain, spinal cord, or on the brain’s surface. Normally, arteries carry oxygen-rich blood from the heart to the brain, while veins carry oxygen-depleted blood away from the brain back to the heart. An AVM causes a direct connection between one or more arteries and veins, disrupting the normal blood circulation process.

Symptoms

AVMs usually are congenital, or present at birth. However, they often go undiagnosed if a patient doesn’t show symptoms. Over time, thin-walled veins may not be able to handle the high-pressure blood flow from the arteries. This can cause symptoms such as headaches, weakness, numbness, vision loss, and seizures.

Bleeding brain AVM

Untreated AVMs may rupture and bleed into the brain, causing stroke and symptoms such as paralysis or trouble communicating. A bleeding brain AVM is life-threatening and requires emergency medical attention.

It is unclear what causes brain AVMs, though they do not appear to be inherited (passed down from parents). Brain AVMs occur in less than 1% of the general population and are more common in males than females.

Why choose UAB Medicine

UAB Medicine was the first hospital in Alabama to be certified as a Comprehensive Stroke Center by the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association and The Joint Commission, a nonprofit national health care accreditation agency. This elite designation recognizes hospitals that maintain the staff, training, and technology to treat patients with the most complex strokes, at any time of day or night.

U.S. News & World Report consistently ranks UAB Neurology and Neurosurgery among the top programs of their kind in the nation. We handle more than 1,800 stroke cases annually, the most serious of them in our dedicated Neurointensive Care Unit and Stroke Unit.

Here are some highlights of our stroke care:

Stroke care at UAB is delivered by a large team of expert stroke physicians who are on duty 24/7.
UAB has more board-certified vascular neurologists, neurointensivists, endovascular neurosurgeons, and vascular neurosurgeons than any other hospital in Alabama, plus 350 nurses with stroke-specific training.
Our 36-bed Neurosciences Intensive Care Unit is among the largest in the United States.
Because UAB Medicine is a major center for stroke research, patients may have access to promising new stroke treatments not available at other medical centers.

Our stroke treatment process

When a stroke patient arrives at the UAB Hospital Emergency Department, a “Code Stroke” is activated. This code triggers a rapid response team, which evaluates the patient to ensure the most appropriate care in the shortest time possible. Our range of advanced treatments includes acute therapies – such as the clot-busting medication Alteplase (tPA) – and catheter-based procedures like thrombectomy, aspiration, and stenting. The extensive resources and technologies of our neurovascular stroke service are not available at other hospitals in the area.

After admission and initial management, stroke patients are further evaluated in our dedicated Stroke Unit, which is staffed by nurses, physicians, and rehabilitation therapists who specialize in stroke. Every patient undergoes a thorough, individualized diagnostic workup with advanced imaging technologies to determine the underlying cause of the stroke.

When it’s time to begin the recovery process, UAB Spain Rehabilitation Center provides complete rehabilitation programs that are customized to each patient. Also, our Stroke Recovery Clinic helps stroke survivors recover better and with fewer long-term effects. One of only a few such clinics in the country, the Stroke Recovery Clinic combines speech, occupational, and physical therapy with neuropsychology care and social work services.

UAB Medicine strives to provide high-quality, research-based stroke care to our community. The information in this report shows data on key performance measures that reflect our commitment to excellent care.