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Updated: Jun 24, 2026

Intrathecal Application of a Fluorescent Dye for the Identification of Cerebrospinal Fluid Leaks in Cochlear Malformation
Published on: February 29, 2020
Factors affecting postoperative cerebrospinal fluid leaks after retrosigmoidal craniotomy for vestibular schwannomas
Lennart H Stieglitz1, Karsten H Wrede, Alireza Gharabaghi
1Department of Neurosurgery, International Neuroscience Institute, Hannover, Germany. lennart@stieglitze.de
Object:
The aim of this study was to identify patients likely to develop CSF leaks after vestibular schwannoma surgery using a retrospective analysis for the identification of risk factors.
Methods:
Between January 2001 and December 2006, 420 patients underwent retrosigmoidal microsurgical tumor removal in a standardized procedure. Of these 420 patients, 363 underwent treatment for the first time, and 27 suffered from recurrent tumors. Twenty-six patients had bilateral tumors due to neurofibromatosis Type 2, and 4 patients had previously undergone radiosurgical treatment. An analysis was performed to examine the incidence of postoperative CSF fistulas in all 4 groups.
Results:
The incidence of CSF leakage was higher in the tumor recurrence group (11.1%) than in patients undergoing surgery for the first time (4.4%). There were no CSF fistulas in the neurofibromatosis Type 2 group or in patients with preoperative radiosurgical treatment. Tumor size was identified as a possible risk factor in a previous study.
Conclusions:
Surgery for recurrent tumors is a significant risk factor for the development of CSF leaks.
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