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Spinal arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is a rare, abnormal tangle of blood vessels on, in or near the spinal cord. Untreated, spinal AVM can permanently damage your spinal cord.

Oxygen-rich blood normally enters your spinal cord through arteries, which branch into smaller blood vessels (capillaries). Your spinal cord uses oxygen from the blood in your capillaries, and this oxygen-depleted blood then passes into veins that drain blood from your spinal cord to your heart and lungs. In a spinal AVM, your blood passes directly from your arteries to your veins, bypassing capillaries.

This disruption in blood flow causes cells in your spinal tissues to deteriorate or die. The arteries and veins in a spinal AVM can rupture, which results in bleeding in the spinal cord (hemorrhage). Sometimes, the AVM enlarges and compresses the spinal cord.

Spinal AVM can go undiagnosed unless you begin experiencing signs and symptoms. The condition can be treated with surgery to halt or possibly reverse some of the spinal damage.

Source: http://www.mayoclinic.com

Most people with spinal AVM experience few if any significant symptoms.

When symptoms do occur, they vary depending on the severity and location of the AVM. These symptoms usually appear when people are in their 20s, although almost 20 percent of people diagnosed with spinal AVM are under the age of 16.

The onset of symptoms may be sudden or gradual. Symptoms typically include:

• Problems with walking or climbing stairs
• Numbness, tingling or sudden pain in your legs
• Weakness on one or both sides of your body

As the condition progresses, additional symptoms may include:

• Lack of feeling in the legs
• Difficulty urinating or moving your bowels
• Lower back pain
• Headache
• Stiff neck
• Sensitivity to light

When to see a doctor

Make an appointment with your doctor if you experience signs and symptoms of spinal arteriovenous malformation.

Source: http://www.mayoclinic.com

The specific cause isn't known. Spinal AVM was previously thought to be present from birth (congenital), but researchers are no longer sure that is the case.

Source: http://www.mayoclinic.com

Appointments & care

At Mayo Clinic, we take the time to listen, to find answers and to provide you the best care.

Spinal arteriovenous malformations can be difficult to diagnose because signs and symptoms are similar to those of other spinal conditions, such as spinal dural arteriovenous fistula, spinal stenosis, multiple sclerosis or a spinal cord tumor.

Your doctor is likely to recommend:

• MRI, which can identify a mass resulting from abnormally connected blood vessels.
• Angiography, which is usually needed to determine the location and characteristics of the blood vessels involved in the AVM. A thin tube (catheter) is inserted into an artery in your groin and guided to your spinal cord. Dye is injected into blood vessels in your spinal cord to make them visible under X-ray imaging.

Source: http://www.mayoclinic.com

Untreated, spinal arteriovenous malformations can lead to progressive disability. Specific complications may include:

• Problems with moving (motor deficits)
• Pain, tingling and numbness (sensory deficits)
• Spinal column deformity
• Bulging blood vessel (aneurysm)
• High blood pressure in the veins (venous hypertension), which can cause fluid accumulation (edema) and tissue death due to lack of oxygen (spinal cord infarction)
• Hemorrhage, which can accelerate spinal cord damage

Source: http://www.mayoclinic.com

There are no known risk factors for spinal arteriovenous malformation. The condition occurs equally in men and women.

Source: http://www.mayoclinic.com