A Case of Successful Surgical Treatment of Migraine Headaches in a Patient with Sporadic Pulmonary Arteriovenous Malformations

Pulmonary arteriovenous malformations (PAVMs) are thin-walled aneurysms caused by abnormal communication between the pulmonary arteries and veins. Migraine headaches are sometimes the presenting clinical manifestation of PAVMs. Although embolotherapy, using detachable balloons or stainless steel coils, is generally accepted as the best choice for the treatment of multiple PAVMs, the mode of intervention for solitary PAVMs remains a subject of debate. We present a 43-yr-old woman with a 10-yr history of chronic migraines and dyspnea on exertion. She was discovered to have a large solitary centrally located PAVM, placing her at high risk of complications if she were to undergo percutaneous transcatheter embolization. She underwent successful surgical resection of her right middle lobe without complications, resulting in subsequent symptomatic improvement.