Treatment of multiple pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas with therapeutic embolization in Osler-Rendu-Weber Syndrome

Abstract

Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia(Osler-Rendu-Weber Syndrome) is characterized by telangiectasia of the skin and muCOUS membranes and intermittent bleeding from vascular abnormalities. About 20% of patient's with this syndrome have pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas. Pulmonary arteriovenous fistula is uncommon malformation which has an abnormal connection between the pulmonary capillary bed, in which venous blood in the pulmonary artery is shunted through the fistula into the pulmonary vein without exposure to alveolar oxygen and result in unoxygenated, desaturated systemic arterial blood, polycythemia, cyanosis and clubbing. Death often results from cerebral abscess and rupture of the malformation with massive hemorrhage. Therapeutic intervention is recommended for all symptomatic patients because of the risk of these serious complications. Treatment options include surgery and transcatheter obliteration with steel coils or detachable balloons. Therapeutic embolization has the advantages that multiple bilateral pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas can be occluded and also that the procedure can be repeated if necessary. Recently we experienced a case of the multiple bilateral pulmonary arteriovenous fistulas associated with telangiectatic change of hepatic artery and multiple angiodysplasia on the gastric mucosa in 41 years old female patient who bad mild dyspnea of exertion (NYHA class II), dubbing finger, severe iron deficiency anemia. She was treated with embolization technique using steel coils and iron replacement. After the therapeutic embolization, significant improvement of dyspnea of exertion with disappearance of multiple pulmonary nodule on follow-up simple chest x-ray was noted. During the subsequent six months follow-up period, she had the improvement of symptoms and iron deficiency anemia.