Hydrocephalus is the abnormal
accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) within the ventricles in the brain.
Hydrocephalus can be developed before or after birth, or after a significant
injury to the head. In my case I developed it after birth. Because I was born
premature, the blood vessels in my brain were ‘delicate’. So, I ended up
developing a “brain bleed” (grade IV Intra-Ventricular Hemorrhage, or IVH).
This caused scarring in my ventricles and the CSF was unable to drain properly.
The most common treatment for Hydrocephalus
is a shunt- a catheter, a pressure valve, and a tube. The catheter goes through
the brain in to the ventricle that is affected and pulls the CSF into the
pressure valve. Once enough pressure builds up, CSF is released down the tube
into the heart or abdomen (my tubing goes into my abdomen). Basically, it’s
like the scarring is a roadblock and the shunt is a detour for the CSF.
The shunt fails pretty often. I
have had 4 revisions and 1 complete replacement and there are many people that
have had way more, for example, another girl my age has had almost 70
revisions/replacements. There are also those few lucky people that the ONLY
surgery was the initial placement of the shunt!
Of the people I have met with
Hydrocephalus, I hear a different story every time! There are many different
ways to develop Hydrocephalus, many different treatments, and everyone has
their own combination of side effects, disabilities, symptoms, and types of
shunt failures!
* Ok, if you are a neurosurgeon
reading this…I know this is probably not considered medically accurate; I was
just trying to keep it simple. :)
No comments:
Post a Comment