Treatment of Intracranial Venous Occlusive Disease with Sigmoid Sinus Angioplasty and Stent Placement in a Case of Infantile Multifocal Dural Arteriovenous Shunts

Abstract

The infantile dural arteriovenous shunts are multifocal involving different dural sinuses and progress to an occlusive venopathy with sigmoid sinus and/or jugular bulb stenosis and subsequent occlusion. We report a successful angioplasty and stent placement of a sigmoid sinus — jugular bulb stenosis due to venous occlusive disease in a patient with infantile dural arteriovenous shunts.

A five-year-old patient presented with status epilepticus due to severe venous congestive encephalopathy. The angiogram revealed multifocal dural arteriovenous shunts, occlusion of the right sigmoid sinus, absence of cavernous sinuses and significant stenosis of the left sigmoid sinus — jugular bulb.

By transvenous approach, percutaneous transluminal balloon angioplasty and stent placement of the stenosed left sigmoid sinus — jugular bulb segment was performed. This resulted in a significant decrease of the venous pressure gradient across the stenosis and allowed a dramatic clinical recovery.

Dural sinus angioplasty and stent placement appears to be a safe and effective procedure and should be considered in the treatment of the venous occlusive disease associated with infantile dural arteriovenous shunts.