Summary of pros and cons of brain VM screening for children with HHT
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Detect brain VM before rupture, allowing experts to determine whether treatment may be beneficial before a child has neurologic disability or even death | Uncertain benefit of treatment of unruptured brain AVMs based on adult data from patients with sporadic AVMs |
| Allow VMs that do not require treatment upon identification to be monitored with serial imaging to detect changes that may cause experts to decide to treat the VM | Need for sedation in some children |
| MR images that detect blood products can evaluate signs of asymptomatic bleeding, which may assist in risk stratification | Causes anxiety for some parents and children if a brain VM is identified |