Neuronavigation and Laparoscopy Guided Ventriculoperitoneal Shunt Insertion for the Treatment of Hydrocephalus

Hydrocephalus is a common adult neurosurgical condition typically requiring treatment with a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) shunt, of which the ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt is the most common type. Unfortunately, the failure rates of VP shunts are alarmingly high, with up to 50% of patients requiring revision surgery within 2 years. VP shunt failure may occur due to infection, or catheter mispositioning, migration, and occlusion. We undertook a joint neurosurgery and general surgery collaboration in a 7-year prospective non-randomized consecutive quality improvement cohort study to reduce the rates of ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt failures in 224 adult patients at a tertiary care institution. The initiative combined the use of electromagnetic stereotactic neuronavigation to guide the placement of the proximal catheter and laparoscopy to place the distal catheter under direct visualization. With laparoscopic assistance, the distal catheter was anchored through a small hole created in the falciform ligament and placed into the right retrohepatic space, free from the omentum, adhesions, or bowel that might obstruct the catheter tip. The surgeries were performed using a shunt infection prevention protocol to reduce the risk of shunt infections. Here, we present an intraoperative video of the surgical procedure. Compliance with shunt infection reduction strategies and the combined utilization of neuronavigation and laparoscopy techniques in adult VP shunt surgery resulted in a 44% reduction in the risk of overall shunt failure. The significant positive impact with regard to shunt-failure-free patient outcomes among patients who underwent VP shunt surgery using this strategy underscores the value associated with the use of these modern intraoperative techniques and cross-specialty collaboration during VP shunt surgery.