Early and long-term outcome of surgical versus conservative management for intracranial cerebral cavernous malformation: Meta-analysis of reconstructed time-to-event data

Background: Cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs) present challenges in clinical management due to a lack of definitive evidence from clinical trials. Surgical intervention and observational management are commonly used, yet their efficacy and long-term outcomes remain controversial. Objective: This meta-analysis evaluates the effectiveness of surgical intervention versus conservative management in patients with symptomatic CCMs over various time frames to determine optimal treatment strategies. Methods: A systematic review and reconstructed time-to-event meta-analysis were conducted, following PRISMA guidelines. Data from selected studies comparing surgical intervention to conservative management for CCMs were analyzed using pooled patient data from Kaplan-Meier curves. New focal neurological deficit (FND) or intracranial hemorrhage (ICH) were the outcome metrics. Results: Four eligible studies, comprising 290 patients, were included. Surgical intervention showed 43 events over a mean time to FND/ICH of 6.372 years (95 % CI: 3.536-8.005), while observational management had 48 events with a significantly longer mean time of 10.992 years (95 % CI: 6.070-8.005). No significant difference was found at 2 years (p = 0.910), but at 5 and 10 years, surgical intervention had more events and shorter mean times (p < 0.0001). Sensitivity analysis for previously bleeding CCMs showed no significant difference in events (p = 0.131). Conclusion: This meta-analysis suggests observational management may achieve favorable long-term outcomes for symptomatic CCMs. Despite ongoing controversies, the findings highlight the need for further research, particularly randomized controlled trials, to refine treatment strategies and optimize patient care.