Patient functional outcomes and quality of life after surgery for unruptured brain arteriovenous malformation.

BACKGROUND: Studies have questioned the effectiveness of surgery for the management of unruptured brain arteriovenous malformation (ubAVM). Few studies have examined functional outcomes and quality of life (QOL) prior and 12 months after surgical repair of ubAVM. OBJECTIVE: This study examined the effectiveness of surgical management of ubAVM by measuring patients' perceived QOL and their ability to perform everyday activities. METHODS: Between 2011 and 2016, patients diagnosed with an unbAVM were assessed using the Quality Metric Short Form 36 (SF36), the DriveSafe component of the off-road driver screening tool DriveSafeDriveAware (DSDA), the modified Barthel Index (mBI) and the modified Rankin Scale (mRS). Reassessments were conducted at the 6-week post-operative follow-up for surgical patients and at 12-month follow-up for surgical and conservatively managed patients. RESULTS: Forty-five patients enrolled in the study, of which 35 (78%) had their ubAVM surgically treated. Patients undergoing surgery had a significantly lower ubAVM Spetzler-Ponce Class (SPC). There was no significant difference 12 months after presentation in function or QOL for either the conservative or surgical group. The surgical group had significantly higher QOL of life scores from pre-surgery to 12 months post-surgery (PCS p < 0.01; MCS p = 0.02). Higher SP grade ubAVM was significantly related to poorer function in the surgical group (SP C compared with SP A; p = 0.04, mean difference - 12.4, 95%CI - 24.3 to - 0.4). CONCLUSION: Function and QOL are not diminished after surgical treatment of low Spetzler-Ponce Class unruptured brain arteriovenous malformations. QOL is higher 12 months after surgery for ubAVM than for those who do not have treatment for their ubAVM.

Quality of life and disability 12 months after surgery vs. conservative management for unruptured brain arteriovenous malformations: Scottish population-based and Australian hospital-based studies.

BACKGROUND: Few data are available on disability and quality of life (QOL) after surgery versus conservative management for unruptured brain arteriovenous malformations (uAVMs). OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that QOL and disability are worse after surgery ± preoperative embolisation for uAVM compared with conservative management. METHODS: We included consecutive patients diagnosed with uAVM from a prospective population-based study in Scotland (1999-2003; 2006-2010) and a prospective hospital-based series in Australia (2011-2015). We assessed outcomes on the modified Rankin Scale (mRS) and the Short Form (SF)-36 at ~ 12 months after surgery or conservative treatment and compared these groups using continuous ordinal regression in the two cohorts separately. RESULTS: Surgery was performed for 29% of all uAVM cases diagnosed in Scotland and 84% of all uAVM referred in Australia. There was no statistically significant difference between surgery and conservative management at 12 months among 79 patients in Scotland (mean SF-36 Physical Component Score (PCS) 39 [SD 14] vs. 39 [SD 13]; mean SF-36 Mental Component Score (MCS) 38 [SD 14] vs. 39 [SD 14]; mRS > 1, 24 vs. 9%), nor among 37 patients in Australia (PCS 51 [SD 10] vs. 49 [SD 6]; MCS 48 [SD 12] vs. 49 [SD 10]; mRS > 1, 19 vs. 30%). In the Australian series, there was no statistically significant change in the MCS and PCS between baseline before surgery or conservative management and 12 months. CONCLUSIONS: We did not find a statistically significant difference between surgery ± preoperative embolisation and conservative management in disability or QOL at 12 months.

Functional outcomes and quality of life after microsurgical clipping of unruptured intracranial aneurysms: a prospective cohort study.

OBJECTIVE :Few studies have examined patients' ability to drive and quality of life (QOL) after microsurgical repair for unruptured intracranial aneurysms (uIAs). However, without a strong evidentiary basis, jurisdictional road transport authorities have recommended driving restrictions following brain surgery. In the present study, authors examined the outcomes of the microsurgical repair of uIAs by measuring patients' perceived QOL and cognitive abilities related to driving. METHODS: Between January 2011 and January 2016, patients with a new diagnosis of uIA were prospectively enrolled in this study. Assessments were performed at referral, before surgery, and at 6 weeks and 12 months after surgery in those undergoing microsurgical repair and at referral and at 12 months in conservatively managed patients. Assessments included the Physical Component Summary (PCS) and Mental Component Summary (MCS) of the SF-36, the off-road driver-screening instrument DriveSafe (DS), the modified Barthel Index (mBI), and the modified Rankin Scale (mRS). RESULTS: One hundred sixty-nine patients were enrolled in and completed the study, and 112 (66%) of them had microsurgical repair of their aneurysm. In the microsurgical group, there was a trend for improved DS scores: from a mean (± standard deviation) score of 108 ± 10.7 before surgery to 111 ± 9.7 at 6 weeks after surgery to 112 ± 10.2 at 12 months after surgery (p = 0.05). Two percent of the microsurgical repair group and 4% of the conservatively managed group whose initial scores indicated competency to drive according to the DS test subsequently had 12-month scores deemed as not competent to drive; the difference between these 2 groups was not statistically significant (p > 0.99). Factors associated with a decline in the DS score among those who had a license at the time of initial assessment were an increasing age (p < 0.01) and mRS score > 0 at one of the assessments (initial, 6 weeks, or 12 months; p < 0.01). Mean PCS scores in the microsurgical repair group were 52 ± 8.1, 46 ± 6.8, and 52 ± 7.1 at the initial, 6-week, and 12-month assessments, respectively (p < 0.01). These values represented a significant decline in the mean PCS score at 6 weeks that recovered by 12 months (p < 0.01). There were no significant changes in the MCS, mBI, or mRS scores in the surgical group. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, QOL at 12 months for the microsurgical repair group had not decreased and was comparable to that in the conservatively managed group. Furthermore, as assessed by the DS test, the majority of patients were not affected in their ability to drive.

The Risk of Seizure Following Surgery for Brain Arteriovenous Malformation: A Prospective Cohort Study.

BACKGROUND: The evidence for the risk of seizures following surgery for brain arteriovenous malformations (bAVM) is limited. OBJECTIVE: To determine the risk of seizures after discharge from surgery for supratentorial bAVM. METHODS: A prospectively collected cohort database of 559 supratentorial bAVM patients (excluding patients where surgery was not performed with the primary intention of treating the bAVM) was analyzed. Cox proportional hazards regression models (Cox regression) were generated assessing risk factors, a Receiver Operator Characteristic curve was generated to identify a cut-point for size and Kaplan-Meier life table curves created to identify the cumulative freedom from postoperative seizure. RESULTS: Preoperative histories of more than 2 seizures and increasing maximum diameter (size, cm) of bAVM were found to be significantly (P < .01) associated with the development of postoperative seizures and remained significant in the Cox regression (size as continuous variable: P = .01; hazard ratio: 1.2; 95% confidence interval: 1.0-1.3; more than 2 seizures: P = .02; hazard ratio: 2.1; 95% confidence interval: 1.1-3.8). The cumulative risk of first seizure after discharge from hospital following resection surgery for all patients with bAVM was 5.8% and 18% at 12 mo and 7 yr, respectively. The 7-yr risk of developing postoperative seizures ranged from 11% for patients with bAVM ≤4 cm and with 0 to 2 preoperative seizures, to 59% for patients with bAVM >4 cm and with >2 preoperative. CONCLUSION: The risk of seizures after discharge from hospital following surgery for bAVM increases with the maximum diameter of the bAVM and a patient history of more than 2 preoperative seizures.