[The use of endoscopic surgery for chronic subdural hematoma]

The surgical procedures for treating chronic subdural hematoma (CSH) are carried out with a variety of different methods. The generally used operative method is a less invasive burr hole irrigation under local anesthesia. Recently, we have devised a new simple method using an endoscope to treat CSH. We have been using an endoscopically guided method in which a drainage tube is inserted in the hematoma cavity. We also analyzed the endoscopic findings in the hematoma cavities and reported a high recurrence rate in patients with clots in the hematoma cavity, which suggest the importance of clot removal to reduce recurrence. In this study, the advantage of endoscopic surgery for chronic subdural hematoma is demonstrated.