Can you Embolise 100% of an AVM?

General
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Hi, George, there was a Washington Post article awhile back about a woman with an AVM in her heart. Because she really didn't have many choices, her doctor tried embolizing the entire AVM with Onyx, and she survived, and the AVM shrank. http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/risky-business/2011/07/06/gIQAzxh7YI_story_2.html

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Hi George,

I think the best answer is "it depends" (I see this response all the time on a sailing website I follow)..........

For non-brain AVMs, I think embolization is one of the most used treatments, based on what I read here. For brain AVMs, which I'm more familiar with, I think embolizations, while they ocassionally might be 100% successful in obliterating an AVM, I think embos are more often used in conjunction with radiation and/or surgery to remove the last of the AVM. An embo can reduce the size of the AVM to make surgery on the remaining practical.

Hope this helps.
Ron, KS

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my 21 yr old son had 90 percent embolisation of his ventricular wall avm.what is his prognosis.

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Anil,

I don't think there's anyway to tell, let alone anyone on this site offering an opinion.

Ron