Emergency ventriculostomy-experience with a new screw device: technical note.
Emergency situations, such as acute hydrocephalus or ventricular hemorrhage, require immediate and reliable treatment by ventriculostomy. The method used has to be standardized, applicable in a fast manner, and associated with only minimum risk of infection. We present a recently developed set for external ventriculostomy, which meets the above-standing requirements, and which consists of a screw with self-biting thread, a metal cannula, and a special screwdriver. Ventriculostomy can be performed easily within 2 minutes, and the system can be fixed rigidly to the skull of the patient for a period of up to several weeks. Exchange of the cannula is possible within 1 minute. The system has been used in 90 cases so far, with a rate of possible infection of 1.1%.
Department of Neurosurgery, Klinikum Kalkweg, Duisburg, Germany.
C
C
Schaller
B
B
Meyer
V
V
Rohde
W
W
Hassler
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002543:Cerebral Hemorrhage / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D004630:Emergencies; D004867:Equipment Design; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006849:Hydrocephalus / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011859:Radiography; D013525:Surgical Instruments; D014696:Ventriculostomy / Q000295:instrumentation*