Related Experiment Videos
The outcome of shunted hydrocephalic children
1Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, 201, Sec. 2, Shih-Pai Road, Taipei 112, Taiwan. clkao@vghtpe.gov.tw
Insights
Pediatric hydrocephalus patients show varying intellectual development based on cause. Post-meningitis hydrocephalus has higher shunt revision rates and epilepsy incidence, impacting child development.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Neurology
- Neurosurgery
- Developmental Pediatrics
Background:
- Hydrocephalus in children can lead to neurological deficits and intellectual disability.
- Understanding the impact of different etiological types of hydrocephalus is crucial for management.
- Shunt history, including complications and revision rates, is a key factor in patient outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate intellectual development in pediatric hydrocephalus patients.
- To analyze the shunt history, complications, and revision rates in relation to hydrocephalus etiology.
- To correlate etiological factors with neurological sequelae and developmental outcomes.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective review of non-tumoral pediatric hydrocephalic patients (1983-1997).
- Categorization into five etiological groups based on medical history.
- Assessment of intelligence test scores and surgical morbidity as primary outcome measures.
Main Results:
- Post-meningitis hydrocephalus exhibited the highest shunt revision rate (2.50 +/- 0.82, p=0.01).
- While post-meningitis patients showed IQ score retardation, the difference was not statistically significant across groups.
- Epilepsy incidence was highest in post-meningitis cases (40%), and motor deficits were most common in myelomeningocele-associated hydrocephalus (56.25%).
Conclusions:
- Etiology significantly influences neurodevelopmental impairments in childhood hydrocephalus.
- Intellectual development was not directly correlated with the age of initial shunt insertion or revision rates.
- This study offers valuable insights into physical and mental outcomes for counseling families of hydrocephalic children.
Background:
Neurological sequelae and mental retardation may result from different etiological types of hydrocephalus. The aim of our study is to determine the intellectual development and the "shunt history" of these children with regard to the complications and revision rates.
Methods:
We reviewed the medical history of non-tumoral pediatric hydrocephalic patients who had received first shunt insertions between 1983 and 1997 and had been regularly followed up at the out-patient clinics of Taipei Veterans General Hospital. These patients were categorized into five different etiological groups. Their intelligence test scores and the surgical morbidity encountered over this period were used as the main outcome measures.
Results:
Out of the seventy-three patients, post-meningitis hydrocephalus patients had the significantly highest shunt revision rate (2.50 +/- 0.82, p = 0.01). They also showed retardation in IQ scores, but the different was not significant when compared with other groups. The results of IQ tests were not related to either the age of initial shunt insertion (p = 0.461) or revision rates (p = 0.292). For physical disabilities, post-meningitis hydrocephalic patients showed-highest incidence of epilepsy (40%) while hydrocephalic patients associated with myelomeningocele had the highest incidence of motor deficits (56.25%).
Conclusions:
Childhood hydrocephalic patients had different developmental neuroimpairments with respect to different etiologies. This study provides information about the physical and mental outcome of post-operative hydrocephalic patients which is valuable to assist in counsel of their families.