Microsoft Word - 6MoscoteSalazar_AProposal


 
 
 
342         Moscote-Salazar and Alvis-Miranda          New pial arteriovenous fistulas grading scale 

 
 
 

A proposal for a new pial arteriovenous fistulas grading scale 
for neuroendovascular procedures and literature review 

Luis Rafael Moscote-Salazar1, Hernando Raphael Alvis-Miranda2  
1Department of Neurological Endovascular Therapy, Instituto Nacional de Neurología y 
Neurocirugía; México City, México, mineurocirujano@aol.com 
2Universidad de Cartagena, Cartagena de Indias, Colombia 

 

Abstract 
Pial arteriovenous fistulas are an unusual 

type of cerebrovascular lesion. The vascular 
supply of this type of injury comes from 
cortical and pial vessels which are not 
located in the dura leaflets. With the aim to 
make a grading scale for this type of injury, 
we conducted a literature search using the 
keywords "pial arteriovenous fistulas", 
"embolization" associated with "outcome". 
Angiographic and imagenological 
characteristics typically found in pial 
arteriovenous fistulas were taken and was 
developed a preliminary classification 
system that must be validated in future 
studies. Pial arteriovenous fistulas are 
associated with a poor natural history and 
the establishment of an individualized 
therapeutic strategy can provide a good 
prognosis. The endovascular management 
of these lesions is safe and effective. 

Key words: pial arteriovenous fistulas, 
embolization, outcome. 

Introduction 
Pial arteriovenous fistulas (PAVF) are a 

rare type of intracranial arteriovenous 
lesions, with clinical relevance, (1, 2) that 
recently have been recognized as different 
from arteriovenous malformations (AVM). 
(3) PAVF differ from dural arteriovenous 
fistulas in that their arterial supply derive 

from pial and cortical arteries and they are 
not involved by the leaflets of the dura-
mater. 

They can have one or multiple arterial 
conections with only one venous channel, 
without an intervening nidus or capillary. 
PAVF can be located in any cerebral region, 
but usually shown preference for 
supratentorial regions. (4) 

PAVF can be acquired traumatically, 
iatrogenically or can be congenital lesions. 
Due to its unfavorable natural course, the 
conservatory management its associated 
with a mortality rate up to 63%. (5) Because 
of the nidus abscense the shunt closure by 
endovascular or surgical approaches 
represents a satisfactory therapeutical 
procedures. (6) At presentation, can be 
hemorrhages, seizures, focal déficits, and 
heart failure in neonates, headache and 
symptoms of raised intracranial pressure, 
mass effect, palpable masses, cranial 
erosions and macrocephaly.  

This type of fistulas can receive diverse 
endovascular treatments, currently, due to 
the scarce cases reported, a classification 
pointing the type of endovascular 
approaches needed is absent. We propose a 
classification using factors already deemed 
as significant determinants of risk and 
outcome for endovascular PAVF patients. 
The classification scheme proposed is very 
practical in clinical use. 



 
 
 

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Methods 
A literature search was performed in 

several medical databases including 
Medline, showing a total of 33 results using 
the keywords “pial arteriovenous fistulas”, 
“embolization”, associated with “outcome”. 

Emphasis was given to the angiographic, 
imaginologic and hemodynamic 
characteristics found usually in PAVF 
because these can be easily adapted to the 
management established for each particular 
patient; and was developed a preliminary 
grading scale that needs be applied in future 
studies to be validated. The resulting 
articles were assessed by considering factors 
such as: age, gender, clinical presentation, 
and aneurysm or varyx association. 

Results 
From the search of 33 articles, emphasis 

was given to the angiographic, imaginologic 
and hemodynamic characteristics found 
usually in PAVF because these can be easily 
adapted to the management established for 
each particular patient, as mentioned 
previously. 23 articles were found. In Table 
1 are summarized the main factors 
associated with impact on the natural 
course of PAVF, that we consider 
determinant as variable for grading score. 
Age 

Hetts et al., (7) through a retrospective 
review of a neurointerventional database, 
identified 386 pediatric patients with 
intracranial AVFs and AVMs, from which 
25 had  PAVF. They found that PAVF 
constituted 7.3% of pediatric intracranial 
vascular lesions with a nondural 
arteriovenous shunt; single-hole fistulas 
predominate later in childhood and more 
frequently presented with seizures, 
hemorrhage, or focal neurologic deficits. In 

pediatrics patients, the age is a relevant 
factor, in these same review by Hetts et 
al.,(7) they found that patients ≤ 2 years of 
age compared with patients presenting at 
>2 years of age had more treatment 
procedures (P = .041), as in those 
harboring a multi-hole fistula versus those 
with a single-hole fistula (P = .003);  
patients ≤ 2 years of age were also more 
likely to have a multi-hole fistula (100% 
versus 25%, P = .0001) and to have a poor 
clinical outcome (54% versus 0%, P = 
.0052), defined as a pediatric mRS of ≥ 3. 

 
Table 1. Proposal grading scale for PAVF 

Variable Characteristics Value

• Calcification 
Yes 1 
No 0 

• Aferences 
Unique 1 
Multiple 2 

• Location 
Eloquent área 1 
Non-eloquent área 0 

• Associated 
AVM  

Yes 1 
No 0 

• Varix 

>5cms 3 
3-5cms 2 
<3cms 1 
No 0 

Interpretation: Type I: 2-3; Type II: 4-6; Type 
III: 7-8. 
AVM: arteriovenous malformation 
Eloquent area: visual cortex, motor-sensitive 
cortex, hypothalamus, thalamus, intern capsule, 
brainstem, crux cerebri, or cerebellar nucleus. 

 

Varix 
Varix formation is a special finding in 

patients with pial AVF. Some reports 
suggest that the high pressure blood flow 
from arterial feeder directly into the venous 
drainage may result in venous varix 
formation. (8–12)  Yang et al., (13) 
determined that patients presented at 
younger age (≤15 years old) are more likely 



 
 
 
344         Moscote-Salazar and Alvis-Miranda          New pial arteriovenous fistulas grading scale 

 
 
 

to have varix in angiographic study 
(p<0.05) compared with the adult 
population, being the clinical presentation 
different in these two groups. Younger 
patients are more likely to have symptom 
related to shunting effect; however, 
haemorrhage is the major presentation in 
older patients. Furthermore, the absence of 
varix do have significant correlation with 
haemorrhage (p=0.001). However, it is 
necessarily to remember that patients with 
PAVF may manifest differently according to 
their age and the existence of varix. This 
later might exerts a buffer effect to tolerate 
the high arterial flow pressure and 
consequently decrease the risk of bleeding. 
Much less frequently, there is also an 
aneurysm of the feeding artery. (11) 
Calcification 

It is important to consider the presence 
of associated calcification, which is more 
probable in pial than dural arteriovenous 
lesions. The mechanism of calcification in 
these lesions is a dystrophic process due to 
hypoperfusion caused by steal phenomenon 
or venous congestion over a long time,(2) 
when mural calcification is thick, it implies 
a longstanding course of cerebral damage. 
In these circumstances, even when is 
feasible the obliteration trough 
endovascular methods, alleviating the mass 
effect could be impossible; furthermore, 
perform first an endovascular approach, and 
in a second stage surgical removal could be 
tricky when compared to a single operation 
for occluding the accessible feeder artery 
and removing the mass simultaneously. 
Another fact to consider is that the calcified 
shell would physically restrict approach and 
handling of endovascular devices.(2) 
Arteriovenous malformation 

PAVF inducing dural arteriovenous 
shunts (DAVS) have been proposed 

particularly in some high-flow PAVF 
associated with DAVS upstream from their 
drainage into the dural sinus. (14) This 
could be caused by a similar sump effect 
created by the high-flow venous drainage of 
the PAVF downstream. (15) The venous 
changes produced by high-flow pial AVS on 
the venous sinuses, such as increased 
venous pressure or venous outflow 
obstruction, can also be triggering factors. 
(15) But this is not the situation in our 
cases, because they were high-flow DAVSs 
anatomically closely related to the pial AVFs 
that were upstream from the DAVSs. The 
dominant shunts in our cases were high-
flow DAVS rather than PAVF. (15) 

Endovascular therapy of intracranial 
dural arteriovenous fistula may be curative 
but is often complex and carries definite 
risks. Neurosurgical ligation of pial 
draining veins, with pre-operative 
embolization when safe, may be a relatively 
more controlled method to achieve 
complete cure. (16) 
Location 

Lesions in deep and eloquent locations 
can be associated with a high surgical risk 
for neurologic morbidity. (17) 
Outcome 

Lv et al., (17) reviewed the clinical and 
radiologic data of 16 patients with PAVF 
who were treated endovascularly at the 
Beijing Tiantan Hospital between 1998 and 
2008. At the time of the last follow-up 
evaluation (range, 3–12 months; median, 7 
months), 15 patients (93.75%) had a 
Glasgow outcome score of V and 1 patient 
(6.25%) had a Glasgow outcome score of 
IV. Altogether, there were three 
perioperative complications (18.75%). 
During the follow-up period (range, 3–12 
months; mean, 7.4 months), the overall 
morbidity rate was 6.25%. 



 
 
 

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Hydrocephalus caused by venous 
thrombosis is the main complication, thus 
heparin should be given routinely after 
endovascular embolization. (17,18)   

Pathophysiology 
Although they account for only 1.6% of 

all AVM are associated with a poor natural 
history. Patients with PAVF, and specially 
infants, are known to develop hydrovenous 
disorders that rapidly damage the 
surrounding brain, others alterations 
include subependymal or cortical atrophy, 
white matter calcification and delayed 
myelinization; thus early intervention is 
essential for optimal neurological and 
cognitive development. (4,19) 

Intracranial PAVFs differ from AVM 
owing to the lack of nidus and from dural 
arteriovenous fistulas in that they derive 
their arterial supply from pial or cortical 
arterial vessels, and the lesion does not lie 
within the dural leaflets. (8) The 
abnormality from a PAVF arises from its 
high-flow nature. The origin of PAVFs can 
be traumatic, iatrogenic, or congenital. (4) 
Congenital pAVFs are usually present in 
childhood. PAVF are considered to be 
congenital in nature. (20) however, there is 
little evidence that the PAVF diagnosed in 
adults are present in the same form at birth. 
In addition, cases of de novo PAVF have 
been reported. (21–24)  

Little is known about the 
pathophysiological development 
mechanism ofthese lesions, but probably 
are produced by a misstep in the 
embryological development of the 
cerebrovasculature, (4, 25), also, abnormal 
angiogenesis and associated vascular growth 
factors and cytokines may play a role. (4)  

Lasjaunias (19) proposed that the 
congenital event is primarily involving the 

vascular modeling and remodeling process 
at the cellular and structural level, affecting 
the endothelial cells at the venous side of 
the capillaries, resulting in a progressive 
dysfunction, and its manifestations will be 
related with the triggers, such as 
mechanical, hormonal, pharmacologic, 
hemodynamic, thermal, radiation, viral, 
infective, and metabolic factors. 

The frequency of venous varices and 
vessel ectasia, not to mention the 
association of syndromes that embrace 
angiodysplasia, (26) may reflect an inherent 
predilection of dysplastic elements toward 
the formation of such lesions. (4) The 
diverse nature and timing of the various 
triggers causes the different time and form 
of presentation of the abnormal 
arteriovenous shunts. The previous 
postulation can be applied to the acquired 
lesions, in which the trigger is applied for a 
certain length of time and had the same 
consequence on the target cells related to 
venous vascular remodeling.  

The pathogenesis of PAVF also includes 
abnormal expression of various angiogenic 
factors such as vascular endothelial growth 
factor, basic fibroblast growth factor, and 
alpha transforming growth factor. (27–30) 
Suppression of vascular cell growth 
modulators, including endoglin1, has also 
been found. (31) As have been learned from 
cases of acquired PAVF following cerebral 
vein thrombosis (22), ischemia or hypoxia 
are important etiological factors. There is 
evidence that hypoxia is a powerful trigger 
for the up-regulation of angiogenic factors 
expression. (32) 

Main clinical and angiographical 
characteristics 

The majority of AVMs occurring in the 
neonatal and infant period are vein of Galen 



 
 
 
346         Moscote-Salazar and Alvis-Miranda          New pial arteriovenous fistulas grading scale 

 
 
 

malformations. Nongalenic cerebral AVM 
(or pial AVM) have been reported to 
account for roughly 22 % of AVMs found 
in neonates and 35% of AVMs in infants. 
(1) The common presentations in neonates 
are systemic cardiac manifestations (54%), 
seizures (31%), hemorrhage (15%). In 
infants, hemorrhage (38%), hydrodynamic 
disorders (38%), cardiac manifestations 
(16%) and seizures (8%) are known to 
occur. (1)  

PAVF produced in the first years of life 
can be associated with syndromes such as 
Rendu-Osler - Weber and Klipel-
Trenaunay-Weber síndromes. (33, 34) 
PAVF can cause headaches, hemorrhage, 
seizures, focal neurologic deficits, and 
raised intracranial pressure. (18)  

Flow and perfusion pressure through a 
pial AV fistula is certainly high. Impaired 
venous drainage in AVMs has been 
implicated in the risk of hemorrhage, but 
whether venous varices accompanied by 
PAVF are associated with an increased risk 
of hemorrhage remains unclear. At present, 
four-vessel cerebral angiography is the gold 
standard diagnostic procedure which can 
distinguish nongalenic AVFs from AVMs. 
(35) Angiographic diagnostic criteria for 
AVFs consist of: (36) 

1. Rapid circulation time because of 
high-velocity flow;  

2. Enlarged feeding artery; 
3. Direct filling of a large varix. 

Therapeutical approaches 
Therapeutic options of pial AVF include 

surgical excision of lesion, surgical ligation 
of feeder and endovascular obliteration of 
feeders. In addition to standard 
microsurgical technique, additional 
measures such as induced hypotension, 
temporary clipping and pharmacological 

neuroprotection may be helpful.  
The anesthetic team should be ready in 

anticipation of severe blood loss and 
potential circulatory collapse, because 
preexisting venous hypertension may 
precipitate severe bleeding that does not 
respond to these and other standard 
hemostatic measures.  The simple 
disconnection of the fistula should be the 
goal of therapy, (4) and attempts at excision 
of the varix may exacerbate parenchymal 
bleeding. 

Hoh et al have summarized the literature 
from 1970 to 2000. There have been 79 
patients reported to date. Venous varices 
were found in 48 of 54 cases (89%). 
However, at that individual centre, only 
three out of nine were associated with 
varices. In their series, the concept of 'flow-
disconnection' either endovascularly or 
surgically was advocated. (4) Surgical 
disconnection involves either aneurysm clip 
application or cauterization of the feeding 
vessel. Though this has been proven 
effective, some lesions are deep or surgically 
inaccessible and the risk of surgery can be 
very significant. As in this case, severe 
bleeding can be expected due to: 

(1) venous hypertension due to the 
high-flow system and,  

(2) hyperaemia from normal perfusion 
pressure breakthrough.  

Unlike the case of nidus-type AVM, the 
strategy of surgical disconnection without 
lesion resection was found to be sufficient 
for obliteration of the fistula. Hence, 
excision of the varix is probably not 
required. (4)  

Endovascular approach 
PAVF are rare vascular lesions that 

require prompt treatment. As symptomatic 
patients managed conservatively have a 



 
 
 

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poor prognosis, radical treatment should be 
undertaken as soon as possible. (37) 

Obliteration of the fistula by an 
endovascular route, avoiding the risks 
associated with craniotomy, should always 
be considered especially when the lesion is 
deep seated or the risk of neurological 
deficit with surgery is high. (4, 19, 38, 39) 
Also should be considered the endoscopic 
intervention, that can be an effective and 
safe option for the treatment of this type of 
lesion.  

Endovascular attempts are not always 
successful or safe. Several technical 
difficulties in obliteration of the fistula have 
been described. Endovascular embolization 
of the fistula may be complicated by 
migration of the embolization agent into a 
varix, to the lung or elsewhere in the 
cerebral vasculature. (4) 

Newman et al., (40) described a novel 
endovascular treatment strategy that was 
used successfully to treat 2 pediatric 
patients with a PAVF, a single-channel 
high-flow PAVF was diagnosed in 2 male 
patients (6 and 17 years of age). Both 
patients were treated with endovascular 
flow arrest using a highly conformable 
balloon followed by Onyx infusion for 
definitive closure of the fistula. Neither 
patient suffered a complication as a result of 
the procedure. At the 6-month follow-up in 
both cases, the simple discontinuation of 
blood flow had resulted in durable 
obliteration of the fistula and stable or 
improved neurological function; thus, the 
authors conclude that Onyx can be 
delivered successfully into high-flow 
lesions after flow arrest to allow a 
minimally invasive and durable treatment 
for PAVF. 

Paramasivam et al., (41) reported that 
development of de novo dural 

arteriovenous fistula(s) following 
endovascular embolization of a prior high-
flow PAVF is not an uncommon 
development. They are mostly 
asymptomatic and develop anywhere along 
the drainage of the fistula, maturing over 
time and diagnosed during follow-up 
studies, emphasizing the need for follow-up 
angiography. They can be effectively treated 
by endovascular embolization. Localized 
refractory dural fistulas can be dealt with by 
radiosurgery. 

Conclusions 
Intracranial arteriovenous fistulas are 

vascular malformations in which clinical 
suspicion and prompt diagnosis, with a 
subsequent appropriate therapeutic 
approach, are crucial to avoid the 
development of irreversible neurological 
damage or even patient death because these 
lesions can be associated with heavy 
bleeding and high mortality rates. 
Depending on their location and high-flow 
dynamics, these lesions can present 
treatment challenges for both endovascular 
and open cerebrovascular surgeons. 
Disconnection of direct shunting, either by 
endovascular or surgically, is sufficient to 
achieve successful treatment; therefore, 
total resection of the lesion is unnecessary. 
We propose a PAVF grading score, however 
a retrospective study is necessary to validate 
it. To our knowledge this is the first 
proposal for classifying PAVF based on 
evidence. 

 
 

Correspondence: 
Dr. Luis Rafael Moscote-Salazar, Universidad 
de Cartagena, Cartagena de Indias, Colombia.  
e-mail: mineurocirujano@aol.com 



 
 
 
348         Moscote-Salazar and Alvis-Miranda          New pial arteriovenous fistulas grading scale 

 
 
 

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350         Moscote-Salazar and Alvis-Miranda          New pial arteriovenous fistulas grading scale 

 
 
 

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