I had AN surgery back in March of 2000 (translab approach). About three weeks after the surgery, I noticed a thin, colorless fluid would drip from my nose every time I bent forward or held my head down. I returned to the doctor and he had me hold my chin on my chest for a minute with a tissue up to my nose. Sure enough, spinal fluid leaked from my nose when I did that. I was readmitted to the hospital and I had a lumbar drain inserted in my back. They drained spinal fluid for a week while I lay at a 30 degree angle. This was to take the pressure from the spinal fluid off of my surgery site and give it a chance to heal. However, because I had swelling around my facial nerve, I was also on steroids. My doctor thinks the steroids kept my surgery site from healing properly. After a week, the lumbar drain was removed. When I leaned forward, I still had a CSF leak. I ended up going back into surgery so that the leak could be repaired. That was a blessing in disguise. With my first surgery, part of the AN was left because it was wrapped around my facial nerve. When my doctor went back in, the AN had come off the facial nerve and he was able to remove it. I had another lumbar drain placed in my back and spent another week at a 30 degree angle. I have not had any signs of a CSF leak since then. From my experience, I do remember a salty, metalic taste with the leak.