What are the complications of arteriovenous malformations (AVMs)?

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What are the complications of arteriovenous malformations (AVMs)?

Complications of brain AVMs include:

  • Brain bleed/stroke.
  • Seizures.
  • Aneurysm. This is a balloon-like bulge in the walls of any of the blood vessels feeding into or around the AVM (arteries, veins the AVM itself). They develop because of a structural weakness in your blood vessel walls. Aneurysms develop in about 50% of all brain and spinal cord AVMs.
  • Brain damage that affects thinking, mental processing, memory or understanding speech.
  • Coma and death, especially from a large bleed in your brain.

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