When William learned his headaches were caused by a complex AVM (an abnormal tangle of vessels in the brain) and multiple associated brain aneurysms, he traveled to The Johns Hopkins Hospital. After many delicate procedures over five months to block blood vessels of the AVM, followed by a major brain surgery to remove the AVM, William is now back living his life to the fullest. Learn more at http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/neuro. For appointments, Maryland residents should call 410-955-2228, and out-of-state residents should contact 1-855-884-6754.

Sam Messina's life changed with a sneeze. Surgery repaired his arteriovenous malformation. Learn more At Forefront of Medicine: Website: http://www.uchicagomedicine.org Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/uchicagomed Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/uchicagomed Make an appointment today at 888-824-0200.

For years, Noemi Spears had been living with an arteriovenous malformation (AVM), an abnormal collection of blood vessels in her brain that caused seizures, headaches, loss of consciousness and changes in her vision. Noemi was treated by a multidisciplinary team of doctors at Baptist Health Neuroscience Center, who successfully removed the AVM in Noemi's brain and actually improved her vision. [Transcript] [Arteriovenous malformations are a rare condition affecting about 250,000 people in the United States] [Symptoms include sudden and severe headache, nausea & vomiting, seizures and loss of consciousness.] [Noemi Spears] But I love the fact that I can't seem to wipe the smile off my face, I just smile from ear to ear. [Speaker 2] On May 14, 2012, the time bomb in Noemi Spears brain was diffused. She had lived with the arteriovenous malformation, commonly called AVM, for 10 years. 32 year old Noemi was cured by an expert team of doctors at Baptist Hospital in Miami, Florida, which is at the forefront of providing treatments for patients like her. [Jack Klem] Noemi was referred to us here at Baptist for an arteriovenous malformation that had been treated previously, however, it was still active and at risk for bleeding, thereby compromising her ability to enjoy life. [Barry T. Katzen] Vascular malformations are an abnormal collection of blood vessels, that means things like arteries, veins, occasionally lymphatic vessels, and they don't develop in a normal way. They can be detected if they're on the skin because you can actually see them, but if they're deep to the skin they may remain hidden for long periods of time, and only be detected by accident. Here at the Institute we see vascular malformations in virtually every part of the body. [Showing before and after Arterovenous] [Sergio Gonzalez-Arias] At Baptist we have a group of multi-specialties that can deliver all the treatment options required for malformations of the brain or the spinal cord. In Noemi's case we had Dr. Italo Linfante endovascular procedure specialist, and Dr. Jack Klem who collaborated to treat her arteriovenous malformation. Dr. Linfante paved the way with his endovascular treatment of Noemi's malformation for then Dr. Klem, be able to remove it surgically, definitively treating her malformation. [Doctors performing surgery] [Italo Linfante] For the role of endovascular embolization is important for two reasons. First reason is because you can actually sometimes cure the vascular malformation just with endovascular approach. Most commonly, however, we can reduce the size or render this bomb, so to say, ineffective, so that the traditional surgery can be performed safely. [Hospital employees working] [Speaker 2] Naomi was living a normal, healthy life before the AVM caused a brain hemorrhage at the age of 23. In subsequent years, she suffered numbness on one side of her body from the stroke. As the AVM in her brain bled on and off, she had seizures, debilitating headaches, loss of consciousness and changes in her vision. Until now, doctors were unable to help her. [Noemi Spears] I mean, these doctors are amazing at Baptist. They got right on it, found it and already put the puzzle together in less than a year. [Jack Klem] I believe that Naomi's outcome has been fantastic. This was an arteriovenous malformation uniquely positioned within her visual cortex and we were able to preserve and in fact, improve her vision. [Italo Linfante] So our outcome was a typical outcome for a patient that we treat nowadays and she did very well. She had no complications whatsoever. [Noemi crying] [Noemi Spears] Every inch of me tells me my brain's fine and it's unbelievable. It's incredible, the feeling that my body feels. So, yeah, it's done. [Baptist Health South Florida] [End Transcript]

Brandie was suffering from severe headaches and dizziness for over two years. Occasionally, the severity of these symptoms would leave Brandie to pass out or lose vision in her left eye. After an MRI, Brandie was diagnosed with an AVM. A brain arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is a tangle of abnormal blood vessels connecting arteries and veins in the brain. The arteries are responsible for taking oxygen-rich blood from the heart to the brain. Veins carry the oxygen-depleted blood back to the lungs and heart. Left untreated, an AVM can cause strokes, brain damage, or even death. Brandie went to Penn to have surgery with Dr. Omar Choudhri, a Neurosurgeon who specializes in AVMS. After several hours of surgery, Dr. Choudhri was able to remove the blood vessel that was causing Brandie’s symptoms. The second day after the surgery, Brandie was feeling better. “You literally took my headache out of my head, I feel so much better, the pressure, the dizziness it’s all gone”, Brandie states. Brandie is slowly getting back to her life and doing things she could not do before when she had her AVM. She has gotten her life back. To learn more about Penn Neurovascular Center visit: http://bit.ly/30mBGMF To learn more about Dr. Choudhri visit: http://bit.ly/2KM9PQH #AVM #BrainAneurysm #PennMedicine