Percutaneous transcatheter embolization in the treatment of refractory nontraumatic epistaxis

The records of 24 patients with severe intractable non-traumatic epistaxis were reviewed to evaluate the efficacy of embolism therapy. Material and me thod:The histories of 17 patients with idiopathic epistaxis, 6 patients wit h Osler-Rendu-Weber disease and 1 patient with a high-flow angioma were ana lyzed. All patients were treated by means of percutaneus embolization of th e maxillary artery and its branches. Results: In 5/17 patients with idiopathic epistaxis repeat embolization was necessary in 5 cases,while permanent hemostasis was achieved in 16/17 pati ents with embolism alone. Five of the 6 patients with Osler-Rendu-Weber dis ease labelled stage III before treatment were managed successfully with rep eated embolizations,white all cases were reduced to stage I disease. The hi gh-flow angioma was successfully ablated after embolization combined with d irect injection of thrombosing material and laser resection.