Developmental venous anomalies and cavernous angiomas: a review of the concurrence, imaging, and treatment of these vascular malformations.

Deep venous anomalies and cavernous angiomas are two distinct intracranial lesions. Although these lesions can be found in association with each other, they have different pathologic characteristics and developmental mechanisms. These lesions can produce a variety of clinical symptoms or in some cases can be asymptomatic. The management of these anomalies can include conservative measures in some cases and aggressive intervention in others. Several imaging modalities can be used to evaluate these distinct lesions and often more than one are needed for a prompt and reliable diagnosis. Because of the tendency of these lesions to occur simultaneously, thorough evaluation of these anomalies and their surrounding tissues is critical in their clinical management. In this review, the characteristics and radiographic evaluation of these lesions will be presented and the therapeutic options for these anomalies will be discussed.