Common origin of the artery of adamkiewicz and a posterior spinal artery with a spinal dural arteriovenous fistula: a case report

Abstract

Progressive nature of the myelopathy seen in patients with dural arteriovenous fistulas call for timely diagnosis and surgical intervention to alleviate symptoms of neurologic dysfunction. We present a case report of a 51-year-old male presented with progressive sensory and motor deficits, along with gait instability associated with urinary incontinence for a period of one year. MRI of the spine demonstrated a thoracic spinal dural arteriovenous fistula. Spinal angiography showed at T7 on the left a common origin of the artery of adamkiewicz, a posterior spinal artery and the spinal dural arteriovenous fistula. The fistula was surgically treated and the patient made an almost complete recovery. To the author's knowledge, this is the first time that this common origin, of the three vessels, is described in the literature.

Key words:

• Epidural arteriovenous fistula
• spinal vascular malformation
• artery of adamkiewicz
• venous occlusion

Declaration of interests: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper. The authors received no financial or material support. This material was previously presented as abstract at the Canadian Congress of Neurological Sciences, British Colombia, Canada, June 17–22, 2008.