= CAPILLARY ANGIOMA

= nest of dilated capillaries separated by normal neural tissue; commonly “cryptic”

May be associated with:

hereditary Rendu-Osler-Weber syndrome, ataxia-telangiectasia syndrome, irradiation (latency period of 5 months to 22 years)

Age: typically in elderly

• usually asymptomatic (incidental finding at necropsy)

Location: mostly in pons / midbrain >cerebral cortex >spinal cord; usually multiple / may be solitary

• poorly defined area of dilated vessels (resembling petechiae)
• best delineated with MR (due to hemorrhage) with focus of increased signal intensity on contrast-enhanced studies

Cx: punctate hemorrhage (uncommon); gliosis + calcifications (rare)

Prognosis: bleeding in pons (usually fatal)

DDx: cavernous angioma (identical image signature)