My father has been diagnosed with "Arterial Venous Malfunction", in
his case a tangling of vessels in his brain.  I want to read more
about the condition and about treatment options.  We are only
considering single
shot radiation and doing nothing as the  neurosurgeon predicts the
chance of problems(likely a stroke) is about 2% per year.  He is a
very healthy 79 years old.

Hi! Thanks for the question

First of all please take note of the disclaimer below that information
provided at Google Answers is general information only and not a
substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult a doctor
before taking any action.

There are four main treatment options for ARTERIOVENOUS MALFORMATION.
I have listed them her plus their advantages and disadvantages.

1. Surgery

Advantage – Cure is immediate
Disadvantage – “The potential for massive bleeding, risk of damage to
adjacent neural tissue or ischemic stroke, and risks of infection”

2. Neurointerventional radiology – “obliterating vessels with glues or
particles delivered via arterial catheter in the angiography suite”

Advantage – “less invasive than surgery and can reach lesions that are
inaccessible surgically”

Disadvantage – Embolic stroke risks.

3. Stereotactic radiosurgery

Advantage – “noninvasive and can access all anatomic locations of the
brain”

Disadvantage – Treat only small lesions

4. “Combination therapy” – Usually done after surgery only.

“Intracranial Arteriovenous Malformation”
http://www.emedicine.com/med/topic3469.htm 

A discussion of such treatments and example products could be found in
the following links:

Provasis
http://www.provasis.com/product.htm 

Massachusetts General Hospital – Neurovascular Center
http://neurosurgery.mgh.harvard.edu/Neurovascular/default.htm#Future 

Catheter Embolization
http://www.radiologyinfo.org/content/interventional/catheter-embol.htm

Gamma Knife Surgery
http://w3.uokhsc.edu/neurosurgery/gamma/gamma.html 

Endovascular Therapy for Arteriovenous Malformation
http://www.thecni.org/reviews/12-1-p18-yakes.htm 
Radiosurgical Treatment
http://www.medizin.uni-koeln.de/kliniken/stereotaxie/treatments/avm_e.html

AVM – Treatment Options
http://www.montanabrain.com/pages/avm.htm#Treatment%20options

Ohio Health – AVM
http://www.ohiohealth.com/healthreference/reference/768C9BBC-AC35-40DC-8F4744E9305B4943.htm?category=5878

Since you said that you want to read more about this condition, you
may find the following articles very helpful.

Brain Arteriovenous Malformations (AVM)
http://brainavm.uhnres.utoronto.ca/malformations/content/B_AVM.htm 

Yahoo Health
http://health.yahoo.com/health/encyclopedia/000779/1.html 

Medical Encyclopedia
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000779.htm 

Medinformation
http://www.medformation.com/mf/mm_qdis.nsf/qd/nd1605g.htm 

Columbia Presbyterian
http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/nsg/NSGCPMC/specialties/avm.html 

Cedars-Sinai Health System
http://www.csmc.edu/skullbaseinstitute/1870.asp 

Health A-Z
http://www.healthatoz.com/healthatoz/Atoz/ency/arteriovenous_malformations.html
eCure Me
http://www.ecureme.com/emyhealth/data/Arteriovenous_Malformation.asp 

1up Health
http://www.1uphealth.com/health/arteriovenous_malformation_cerebral_info.html

“Arterio Venous Malformations of the Brain and Spine”
http://cpmcnet.columbia.edu/dept/cerebro/AVM.html 

“What you should know about AVM's”
http://www.radsci.ucla.edu:8000/avm/ 

AVM FAQs
http://shsskip.swan.ac.uk/Information/FAQ%20AVM.htm 

“Central Nervous System Vascular Malformations”
http://neurosurgery.mgh.harvard.edu/vascintr.htm 

In the meantime, I highly suggest that you join support groups for AVM
so that you can get advice and take note of personal experiences of
others who have to go through this medical condition. I have found
some support groups for you.

Brain AVM Support Group
http://neurosurgery.mgh.harvard.edu/Interventional/AVMspt.htm 

Aneurysm & AVM Support
http://www.westga.edu/~wmaples/aneurysm.html 

AVM Narratives
http://www.westga.edu/~wmaples/avm.html 

Search terms used:      
AVM  “Arteriovenous Malformations” treatments alternatives medicine
          
I hope these links would help you in your research. Before rating this
answer, please ask for a clarification if you have a question or if
you would need further information.
          
Thanks for visiting us.           
          
Regards,           
Easterangel-ga           
Google Answers Researcher

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Request for Answer Clarification by hoh-ga on 17 Apr 2003 06:17 PDT

Thanks for the answer.  How about alternative medicine.  I noticed
that your search was for "alternatives treatment" what about things
like acupuncutre.  I know there has been alot of success with this
modality post stroke.  Anything about using it for prevention of
stroke or management of AVM?

---

Clarification of Answer by easterangel-ga on 17 Apr 2003 07:38 PDT

Hi again hoh-ga! Thanks for asking a clarification before providing a
rating.

Although I told you about the disclaimer and to check a medical doctor
before making any moves, I consulted with my brother who is a medical
doctor as well before answering your question.

He told me a condition like AVM is anatomical in nature. If this is
the case then usually surgery is the main treatment. This is the
reason why not so much altenative medicine or treatment literature is
available.

Upon receiving your request for clarification, I again consulted him
and told me that the best possible management strategy is the
prevention of a stroke at this point.

I have found the following articles that discusses the possible
preventive alternative treatments and medicines. It also includes a
discussion of acupuncture as well as alternative medicines such as
herbs.

Stroke - "Complementary and Alternative Therapies"
http://www.ivillagehealth.com/library/onemed/content/0,7064,241012_245712,00.html#Alternative

"Alternative and Complementary Medicine for Stroke"
http://www.holistic-online.com/Remedies/Heart/stroke_alt_aternative_home.htm

"The Role of Alternative Medicine in Rehabilitation and Prevention of
Stroke"
http://thecni.org/reviews/11-2-p20-draznin.htm

I hope that this additional information would be of help to you and
your father. Again before making any decision be sure to check with
your doctor.

Best Regards,
Easterangel-ga