Gamma knife surgery for dural arteriovenous shunts: 25 years of experience

Abstract

Gamma knife surgery is an effective treatment for DAVSs, with a low risk of complications. Major disadvantages of this therapy include the time elapsed before obliteration and the possibility that not all shunts will be obliterated. Cortical venous drainage from a DAVS, a risk factor for intracranial hemorrhage, is therefore a relative contraindication. Consequently, GKS can be used in the treatment of both benign DAVSs with subjectively intolerable bruit and aggressive DAVSs not responsive to endovascular treatment or surgery.