title: Cryptococcal ventriculoperitoneal shunt infection.
abstract: The standard treatment of hydrocephalus is placement of a ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt. While infection is a common complication, rarely are fungal organisms implicated. Cryptococcus neoformans has been reported in only nine cases of shunt infection to our knowledge. The timing from shunt placement to symptom onset varies widely from 10 days to 15 months. We present a patient who developed a cryptococcal infection of his VP shunt more than two decades following shunt placement.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Hospital for Neuroscience, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Matthew J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Viereck
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Hospital for Neuroscience, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Nohra
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Chalouhi
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Hospital for Neuroscience, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
authors.forename: David I
authors.initials: DI
authors.lastname: Krieger
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, Thomas Jefferson University and Jefferson Hospital for Neuroscience, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Thomas Jefferson University, Sidney Kimmel Medical College, 909 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA. Electronic address: Kevin.Judy@jefferson.edu.
authors.forename: Kevin D
authors.initials: KD
authors.lastname: Judy
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D003453:Cryptococcosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000628:therapy; D003455:Cryptococcus neoformans / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006801:Humans; D006849:Hydrocephalus / Q000601:surgery*; D008297:Male; D017287:Ventriculoperitoneal Shunt / Q000009:adverse effects*
keywords: CNS shunt infection; Cryptococcus; Ventriculoperitoneal shunt