title: Regional distribution of cerebral arteriovenous malformations. Interactions with sex and handedness.
abstract: On the basis of clinical observation and a developmental theory of cerebral laterality, Geschwind and Galaburda suggested that cerebral arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) are more common in the left hemispheres of male patients. We tested this hypothesis by examining interactions among sex, handedness, and location of lateralized, supratentorial AVMs. Data from 112 cases were analyzed by log-linear procedures. We found that (1) females had a greater proportion of left-hemisphere AVMs, whereas males showed an opposite trend; (2) there were no interactions between sex and handedness; and (3) nondextrals showed a higher proportion of AVMs located in frontal regions, regardless of the hemispheric side of the lesion. Although these findings appear to be inconsistent with the Geschwind-Galaburda hypothesis, the inconsistency may be attributable to the embryonic stage at which this developmental abnormality occurs. In addition, the unexpected findings may also reflect our use of multivariate statistical procedures, which control for interaction effects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Graduate Faculty, New School for Social Research, New York.
authors.forename: W B
authors.initials: WB
authors.lastname: Barr
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jaffe
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wasserstein
authors.forename: W J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Michelson
authors.forename: B M
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Stein
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006801:Humans; D002538:Intracranial Arteriovenous Malformations / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D012737:Sex Factors; D013223:Statistics as Topic