A ventricular catheter guide for rapid and accurate ventricular access

Area of Science:

• Neurosurgery
• Medical Devices
• Surgical Techniques

Background:

• Percutaneous ventriculostomy is crucial for managing intracranial pressure.
• Existing methods for ventricular catheter insertion can be time-consuming and technically challenging.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce an innovative ventricular catheter guide for precise and efficient percutaneous insertion.
• To evaluate the safety and efficacy of this new guide in clinical practice.

Main Methods:

• Development of a cylindrical platform with a removable guide tube for directing surgical trajectory.
• Utilizing the guide for percutaneous insertion of a narrow calibre twist drill and ventricular catheter at right angles to cranial contours.
• Clinical application of the described instrumentation and technique.

Main Results:

• The described technique allows for percutaneous ventriculostomy completion within fifteen minutes.
• Successful single catheter passage through brain tissue was achieved.
• Catheters remained in situ for extended periods without evidence of infection, confirmed by cerebrospinal fluid microbiological analysis.

Conclusions:

• The presented ventricular catheter guide facilitates rapid and accurate percutaneous insertion of ventricular catheters.
• This method offers a safe and efficient approach to ventriculostomy with a low risk of infection.
• The instrumentation and technique are suitable for prolonged in situ catheter placement.