Surgical excision of familial cavernous angioma in the pontomedullary region--case report.

The authors report on a surgical case of cavernous angioma in the pontomedullary region. A 60-year-old male exhibited a progressive neurological deficit consisting mainly of bulbar paresis and cerebellar signs, without ictal episodes, and computed tomographic scans showed growth of the lesion over 3 years. On preoperative assessment, a glial tumor was suspected to coexist with a cavernous angioma. The vascular malformation was totally excised successfully. This case also revealed an unusual familial occurrence.