Intracranial complications of ventriculo-peritoneal shunt : computed tomography evaluation

Abstract EN

To analyze the intracranial complications following ventriculo-peritoneal (V-P) shunt among patients in our locality.Design: Prospective study utilizing CT scan.

Participants: 140 hydrocephalus patients with V-P shunt.

Setting: Computed tomography (CT) scanner Unit at Ibn Sina Teaching Hospital over a period between January 2001 and September 2003 in Mosul City .Main results: One hundred forty hydrocephalus patients with V-P shunt covering all age groups were analyzed, 93 cases (66.4%) were males and 47 cases (33.6%)were females.

37 cases (26.4%) showed impaired or malfunctioning shunt due to obstructive causes, 26 cases (18.6%) were suffering from inter ventricular collection/cyst.

20 cases (14.3%) were suffering from chronic subdural heamatomas.Conclusions: Inter ventricular collection/cyst ,and subdural heamatomas were found as frequent complications among our patients.

This may be related to unavailability of programmable valves during embargo or their poor quality, together with lack of proper antibiotics and also break down of the CT scanner which led to delay in the diagnosis and follow up in the shunted patients.