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Brain Arteriovenous Malformation (AVM)

Brain Arteriovenous Malformation (AVM)

Cerebral arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is a congenital, pathological vascular connection between the arterial and venous cerebral vasculature and has severe complications such as seizure or subarachnoid hemorrhage. An accurate, low-risk hemodynamic assessment across vessel sizes and flow velocities in the cerebral vasculature is needed to improve hemorrhage risk estimates at baseline and throughout staged treatment. We are working to address these needs by developing a non-invasive, non-contrast comprehensive 4D Flow imaging approach to characterize time-resolved 3D blood flow and pressure gradients in AVM. This includes characterizing the hemodynamics of AVMs with 4D flow in order to identify the most clinically relevant metrics and optimizing the 4D flow imaging process to provide that information, from sequence and scan parameters to data post-processing, presentation, and clinical correlation.

Funding: NIH Predoctoral F30 NRSA HL140910

Publications:

  1. Aristova M, Vali A, Ansari SA, Shaibani A, Alden TD, Hurley MC, Jahromi BS, Potts MB, Markl M, Schnell S. Standardized Evaluation of Cerebral Arteriovenous Malformations Using Flow Distribution Network Graphs and Dual-venc 4D Flow MRI. J Magn Reson Imaging. 2019 May 9. Pubmed
  2. Wu, S.A. Ansari, A.R. Honarmand, P. Vakil, M.C. Hurley, B.R. Bendok, J. Carr, T.J. Carroll and M. Markl. Evaluation of 4D Vascular Flow and Tissue Perfusion in Cerebral Arteriovenous Malformations: Influence of Spetzler-Martin Grade, Clinical Presentation, and AVM Risk Factors. American Journal of Neuroradiology June 2015, 36 (6) 1142-1149; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3174/ajnr.A4259
  3. Markl M, Wu C, Hurley MC, Ansari SA, Carroll TJ, Rahme RJ, Aoun SG, Carr J, Batjer H, Bendok B. Cerebral arteriovenous malformation: Complex 3D hemodynamics and 3D blood flow alterations during staged embolization. JMRI September 2013 https://doi.org/10.1002/jmri.24261
  4. Ansari SA, Schnell S, Carroll T, Vakil P, Hurley MC, Wu C, Carr J, Bendok BR, Batjer H, Markl M. Intracranial 4D flow MRI: toward individualized assessment of arteriovenous malformation hemodynamics and treatment-induced changes. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2013 Oct;34(10):1922-8. doi: 10.3174/ajnr.A3537. Epub 2013 May 2.
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