Omental transfer to the brain: an experimental study in hydrocephalic rabbits

Hydrocephalus is a common and potentially lethal condition in children that results from an imbalance between absorption and production of cerebral spinal fluid (CSF). Silastic shunts are inserted to drain excess CSF, but they are prone to a number of problems, and at times may be unreliable and ineffective. This study examines the physiological basis of a pedicled omental transfer to the brain as a functional conduit for CSF in an experimentally induced hydrocephalic rabbit model. The ability of the omentum to transport CSF from the subarachnoid space was tested using radioactive tracer substances: radio-iodinated serum albumin (125I-RISA), chromium 51-ethylenediaminetetraacetate (51Cr-EDTA), and technetium 99m (99mTc) glucoheptonate. Immediate ability of exteriorized omentum to transport artificial CSF, as well as transposed omental transport of subarachnoid CSF at 1 month, were examined. Nuclear scan measurements were correlated with clinical observation and a double-blind histological analysis with trichrome and hematoxylin-eosin stain. Exteriorized omentum rapidly absorbed 99mTc glucoheptonate-labeled artificial CSF, with a rapid appearance in the systemic circulatory and urinary systems. Transposed omentum to the brain in animals with artificially created hydrocephalus showed evidence of CSF-labeled 125I-RISA and 51Cr-EDTA absorption in those animals demonstrating histologically viable omentum.