Transarterial intravenous coil embolization of dural arteriovenous fistulainvolving the superior sagittal sinus

BACKGROUND We report a rare case of traumatic dural arteriovenous fistula involving th e superior sagittal sinus successfully treated by transarterial intravenous coil embolization. CASE PRESENTATION A 38-year-old woman presented with tension headache. She had a past history of severe head injury at the age of three. Computed tomography scanning sh owed a heterogenous low-density area in the right frontal lobe, and magneti c resonance imaging demonstrated abnormal vascular structures in the same a rea. Angiography revealed a dural arteriovenous fistula involving the later al wall of the fully patent superior sagittal sinus. The fistula was fed by scalp, meningeal, and cortical arteries, and drained into a cortical vein leading to the superior sagittal sinus. Femoral transarterial intravenous e mbolization with microcoils; completely occluded the dural arteriovenous fi stula. CONCLUSION Severe head injury may lead to asymptomatic dural arteriovenous fistulas af ter a long time. Transarterial intravenous coil embolization can be effecti ve in the treatment of dural arteriovenous; fistulas involving the superior sagittal sinus. (C) 2001 by Elsevier Science Inc.