[Cavernous angioma. Clinical observations and prognosis of 133 patients].

BACKGROUND

Cavernous angiomas represent 9% of the vascular malformations that affect nervous system. The principal mode of onset is cerebral hemorrhage and epilepsy, and can be sporadic of multiple. In the last, there is a familiar factor specially found in Mexician-American. In our Country there is no data of the clinical or demographic characteristics of the disease. The aim of this study is to describe the clinical characteristics and prognosis of 133 patients with cavernous angiomas consecutively attended in the National Institute of Neurology of Mexico City.

PATIENTS AND

METHODS

Since 1988 we evaluated a total of 146 cases of cavernous angiomas, 133 were confirmed by MRI and included in the analysis of this study. In every case we registered the demographic characteristic, neurological manifestations, and prognosis divided in good o bad outcome, according to the Glasgow outcome scale (1 and > or = 2 respectively). Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics with the Chi square test, and p was set at 0.05 level.

RESULTS

The mean age was 34.3 +/- 14.6 years; 50.4% in male. Eighty seven percent were unique, and the principal manifestation was supratentorial in 65%, infratentorial in 24.8%, supra-infratentorial in 6.8%, and spinal in 3.8%. The clinical manifestations were intracerebral hemorrhage in 58.7%, epilepsy in 48.1%, headache in 37.6%, neurological focalization not secondary to hemorrhage in 8.3%, and incidental in 2.3%. The 6 month outcome was good in 80% of patient assessed by the Glasgow outcome scale.

CONCLUSIONS

In our serie the mean age or presentation was 34 years old, the mean neurological manifestations were cerebral hemorrhage and epilepsy, and the outcome was good in the majority of the cases.