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Published on: March 19, 2018
Downregulation of cerebrospinal fluid production in patients with chronic hydrocephalus
Gerald D Silverberg1, Stephen Huhn, Richard A Jaffe
1Department of Neurosurgery, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, USA. geralds@leland.stanford.edu
Object:
The goal of this study was to determine the effect of hydrocephalus on cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) production rates in patients with acute and chronic hydrocephalus.
Methods:
The authors studied CSF production both in patients presenting with acute and chronic hydrocephalus, and patients with Parkinson disease (PD) of a similar mean age, whose CSF production was known to be normal. A modification of the Masserman method was used to measure CSF production through a ventricular catheter. The CSF production rates (means +/- standard deviations) in the three groups were then compared. The patients with PD had a mean CSF production rate of 0.42 +/- 0.13 ml/minute; this value lies within the normal range measured using this technique. Patients with acute hydrocephalus had a similar CSF production rate of 0.4 +/- 0.13 ml/minute, whereas patients with chronic hydrocephalus had a significantly decreased mean CSF production rate of 0.25 +/- 0.08 ml/minute.
Conclusions:
The authors postulate that chronic increased intracranial pressure causes downregulation of CSF production.
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