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A cerebral shunt is a device permanently implanted inside the head and body to drain excess fluid away from the brain. They are commonly used to treat hydrocephalus , the swelling of the brain due to excess buildup of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF).
Diagram demonstrating surgical placement of a VP shunt used to manage NPH. For suspected cases of NPH, CSF shunting is the first-line treatment. The most common type used to treat NPH is ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunts, which drain CSF fluid to the peritoneal cavity. Adjustable valves allow fine-tuning of CSF drainage.
The pressure in the brain does not get high enough to allow the cerebrospinal fluid to drain in a shunt system, therefore the shunt is open, but malfunctioning in LPH. In cases of LPH, chronic infarcts can also develop along the corona radiata in response to the tension in the brain as the ventricles increase in size.
Shunt obstruction is the most common cause of shunt failure. [66] The shunt can be obstructed at the catheter or the valve itself. Cases of shunt obstruction would present with similar symptoms to untreated hydrocephalus (headaches, nausea, lethargy, etc.). [66] It can be caused by tissue, bacteria, or kinking of the catheter.
Subdural hygromas require two conditions in order to occur. First, there must be a separation in the layers of the Meninges of the brain. Second, the resulting subdural space that occurs from the separation of layers must remain uncompressed in order for CSF to accumulate in the subdural space, resulting in the hygroma. [1]
The shunt also has a valve which serves to maintain one-way flow of the CSF and regulates the flow rate. The end with the catheter is placed in the third ventricle to drain the excess CSF and the other end is placed in the peritoneal cavity or atrium of the heart (making it a ventriculoperitoneal or ventriculoatrial shunt, respectively). The ...
Neurosurgeons can use ShuntCheck flow results along with other diagnostic tests to assess shunt function and malfunction. [1] Hydrocephalus is a condition in which cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) accumulates in the brain, potentially leading to brain damage and death. It is corrected by a shunt which drains excess CSF from the brain to the abdomen.
A shunt is described as a tube, catheter or "surgically created anastomosis" [2] and is designed to bypass or redirect bodily fluids from one point in the body to another. Lumbar–peritoneal shunts are used in neurological disorders, in cases of chronic increased intracranial pressure to drain excess cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) from the ...