Spontaneous arteriovenous fistula of the splenic pedicle with isolated heart failure: A case report and litterature review

Arteriovenous fistulas (AVFs) of the splenic pedicle are rare entities. They are sometimes encountered at the stage of complications. The challenge is to treat patients at an early stage, to avoid complications, and possibly reverse it. Here, we discuss the case of a 72-year-old female patient, that we saw in the Vascular Surgery Unit at Nîmes University Hospital, with an incidentally discovered asymptomatic arteriovenous fistula. The patient presented with a large, asymptomatic arteriovenous fistula of the splenic pedicle, responsible of an isolated heart failure, which was treated by embolization in interventional radiology. The treatment was successful, as the follow-up CT scan showed that the fistula had disappeared. It appears necessary to treat patient patients with AVFs, even if asymptomatic, at an early stage to avoid persistence of a heart failure even after a successful treatment.