[Disorders of the integrative brain functions in posttraumatic hydrocephalus]

As many as 110 patients with posttraumatic hydrocephalus in the remote period of mild closed craniocerebral injury underwent routine neuropsychologic evaluation. 80.9% of the patients presented with disorders of higher integrative functions of the brain; of these, 72.7% appeared to get too easily fatigued, their mental processes running to exhaustion too soon. In decreasing rank order are disorders of attention, slowing down of those processes relating to abstract thought, power of apprehension and recent memory (62.7%, 60.9%, and 34.5% respectively). Mnestic disturbances prevailed among patients with moderate severity posttraumatic hydrocephalus (40%) and external hydrocephalus (47.8%). Mild degree hydrocephalus was free from disturbances to higher integrative functions of the brain. The aforesaid attests to the need of the nootropic, vasoactive agents, drugs having resolving and dehydrating effects to be included into the combined treatment of the above patient population.