Shunt

[Justasis]

    I was wondering if anyone knows anything about shunts.  My sister had to have one put in and the doctors are being pretty vague in explaining it to us.

[Joef]

its plumbing!! ..

basicly your brain produces fluid commonly called CSF .. and if it can not drain correctly down the backbone it causes presure -- headaches or even death! if not treated...

and a shunt is tubing that drains CSF past the blockage ..which in our cases ..normally only LARGE AN's .... but there are other reasons to get one...

I'm I right CrazyCat ?

[tony]

All I would add is its a "non-return valve" ie the fluids can move down the tube
- but not back up
Mostly its possible to channel it cosmetically so that most will never see it
you might be a bit bruised or so for a couple of days
- but after this back to normal
best regards
tony

[chelsmom]

Hello
Like the others have stated, they are needed to help drain the CSF off the brain and prevent hydrocephalus.
My daughter, Chelsea, has a shunt and had 4 shunt revisions in 3 months.  What we learned is that 1/3 of those that have shunts usually have problems and end up having these revisions and the other 2/3 get a shunt and are good to go for 10-20 years before they need to have it replaced.  Another thing is that some shunts are made to withstand the magnetic pull from an MRI up to 3T's.  Eventhough Chelsea's is this type of shunt she ended up having to have it reprogramed after her last MRI as it was knocked out of its setting.  They told us from now on that after she has any future MRI's she will have to go over to the ER where they will check it and reprogram it if needed. Hers is on the left side and she does have a nice little bump there which is tender. 

[Justasis]

Thanks for the explanations!  My sister was moved out of the intensive care last night....a very good sign   
 

[Crazycat]

Yes Joe......This is correct!!

  When csf fluid is blocked and backs up, it causes pressure on the cranium, bringing about, headaches, equilibrium problems; eventually seizures and probably death. This condition is more commonly referred to as "hydrocephalus" or, "water on the brain".
      My bout with hydrocephalus was brought on by a huge A.N.tumor blocking the flow of fluid through a ventricle, which compunded an already bad equilibrium problem.
    Consequently, the doctors felt that I had to have a shunt installed before the tumor was removed. I had to have two shunt surgeries because the first one had somehow become dislodged over night in the hospital. The next morning I was rushed back into surgery to have the first one removed and a new one installed. They tell me it's in permanently. It doesn't really bother me at all but it just feels and even looks a bit awkward having this balloon-like, collapsible ridge on the top of my forehead with a catheter cemented into my skull on one end and the other snaking across the side of my skull, down the side of my neck, across my chest - beneath the skin of course - and into my abdoman. It kind of makes you want to go around with a crash helmet on all the time. I'm extra vigilant about not bumping my head anymore.
    Messing around with csf can be very dangerous because it is through the contamination of csf that Meningitis can be contracted. I remember while being in the hospital they wanted to check my csf. A doctor came in and punctured the shunt under the skin in my head. I remember all this brown liquid running down my face. I'm lucky I didn't get Meningitis! It was bad enough that I got M.R.S.A. while I was in!

 I remember back in the early sixties, my cousin, who was an infant child at the time, had hydrocephalus and had a shunt installed. Today she is a healthy, vibrant mother in her forties - she resembles the actress Stockard Channing. She still has the shunt in even though it has long since stopped working. At a recent family get together, I rubbed my hand over her scalp and sure enough, it's still there.

        Take care, Paul (the Borg)
     

     

[Stevey]

Hey all,

I just had my an terminated n the 31st f jan of this year and had hydrocephalus , my doctor at UPenn did a a retrsigmoid apprach and experienced some cerebellum bruising, hydrocephalus and a weird clot that looked big by MRI but was flattened out in the CT, just missed gettting shunted but Dr. Judy decided to just keep looking at CT's everyday instead of putting me thrugh more poking.  I appreciated that.
I heard that it is not all that bad though, roommate had it done at rehab facility.   Still, I don't want to see another needle or scalpel in a while.
Cheers,

Steve

[jerseygirl]

Hi, Justasis,

Not all shunts are alike. I had something called Lumbar-Peritoneal shunt 18 years ago; it is still with me today and lasted me through two pregnancies with no problems. This type of shunt goes from your spine (Lumbar area) to your abdominal cavity (peritoneum). It is the simplest kind and is reserved for the simplest hydrocephalus cases. I had pooling of CSF under my incision (suboccipital) which could not be resolved by drainage, so I kept coming back to the hospital with headaches and fevers. There is a valve on the side which the doctors can adjust to regulate the flow but that was never needed. The scars were done plastc surgery way and they dissolved a long time ago. MRIs , both brain and spine, were never a problem.

The shunt everybody is talking about here goes from your head to your abdominal cavity and is called Ventricular-Peritoneal. I was told that these are reserved for the more serious cases of hydrocephalus as it was not recommended for me. I know there are a few different kinds but my knowledge ends there.

               Eve