Background: Complications after gamma knife radiosurgery (GKRS) have been attributed most commonly to radiation-induced damage to the brain. Early occlusion of the draining veins has been postulated as one of the rare causes of complications after GKRS, which often occurs at or beyond 6 months after GKRS.
Clinical presentation: We present a very rare incidence of acute onset of hemiparesis caused by a draining vein occlusion within 24 hours after GKRS for arteriovenous malformation. The patient developed hemiparesis within one day after GKRS, which partially improved with steroids. Radiologic investigations revealed an early occlusion of a draining vein, resulting in occlusive hyperemia and neurologic deficit.
Conclusion: Early draining vein occlusion is an important cause of postradiosurgery complications, and it can rarely occur within days.
Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.