Thermosensitive determination of obstructed sites in ventriculoperitoneal shunts.
A simple method is described for checking the patency of ventriculoperitoneal shunts by using a pair of small disc thermistors. With this technique, shunt patency is shown by a downward deflection of the recording trace, blockage of the ventricular catheter is indicated by a flat-line recording, and obstruction of the distal end of the abdominal catheter is demonstrated by an upward deflection. These observations were confirmed in a study of 32 hydrocephalic patients with obstructed shunts who subsequently underwent shuntography and operation. An experimental model was also devised to study the mechanism of the recording changes.
D000328:Adult; D002552:Cerebral Ventricles / Q000502:physiology; D002555:Cerebrospinal Fluid / Q000502:physiology; D002557:Cerebrospinal Fluid Shunts; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006849:Hydrocephalus / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery*; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000175:diagnosis*; D013696:Temperature