Arteriovenous Malformations

Signs and Symptoms
Diagnosis
Treatment

Diagnosis

The following tests may be used to determine if your child has an arteriovenous malformation (AVM), as well as help identify its size, location and blood-flow pattern.

• Computed Tomography (CT) -- A CT scan is a method of body imaging in which a thin X-ray beam rotates around the patient. It can be used to detect the presence of blood in the brain.

• Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) -- An MRI scan can detect if there is blood in the brain. It is a non-invasive procedure that uses powerful magnets and radio waves to construct pictures of the body.

• Angiogram -- This is an important test in the diagnosis of AVM and involves a special X-ray exam that enables a radiologist, a doctor who specializes in understanding and interpreting X-rays, to study a person's blood vessels. Your child's doctor will insert a small tube, called a catheter, into the blood vessel and then inject a special dye that makes the vessels visible on the X-rays. This will allow the doctor to observe how the blood travels through the blood vessels of the brain. The procedure takes about one hour.

Reviewed by health care specialists at UCSF Children's Hospital.
Last updated February 26, 2008