Hydrocephalus & Shunt Surgery Treatment at CritiCare Asia Hospitals, Kurla, Mumbai
CritiCare Asia Hospitals, Kurla, is a neurology hospital in Mumbai where hydrocephalus is explained in plain terms before any treatment is chosen. The brain sits in a cushion of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which is produced and absorbed continuously. Hydrocephalus develops when that balance is upset, and fluid builds up in the brain's ventricles, pressing on delicate tissue. Infants, children, and adults can all be affected, and hydrocephalus treatment in Kurla, Mumbai begins with a full evaluation of why the fluid has collected.
Types of Hydrocephalus
- Communicating
fluid moves freely between the ventricles but is not absorbed properly. - Obstructive
a tumour, cyst or narrowing blocks the normal fluid pathway. - Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH)
a slow build-up, mostly in older adults, where measured pressure can look normal. - Congenital or acquired
present from birth, or following infection, bleeding, head injury or a tumour.
Symptoms by Age
Signs differ with age, which is one reason the condition is sometimes missed.
- Infants may show a rapidly enlarging head, a tense or bulging soft spot, persistent vomiting, irritability and eyes that seem fixed downwards.
- Older children and adults more often have headache, particularly on waking, with nausea, blurred or double vision, drowsiness and poor balance.
- NPH tends to bring an unsteady, shuffling walk, declining memory and thinking, and loss of bladder control, all easily mistaken for ageing or dementia.
What Causes It
In infants, hydrocephalus may follow premature birth with bleeding in the brain, a developmental problem of the brain or spine, or infection. In adults, it often follows a brain haemorrhage, head injury, meningitis or a tumour blocking the fluid pathway. Sometimes no clear cause is found, particularly in older adults with NPH. Because the cause shapes the choice between a shunt, a ventriculostomy or careful observation, it is established before hydrocephalus surgery in Kurla, Mumbai is planned.
Diagnosis
Diagnosis rests on examination and imaging. Ultrasound can be used through the soft spot in infants, while CT and MRI show enlarged ventricles and may reveal the cause. An eye examination can show swelling of the optic nerve, and in children, head size is tracked over time. In suspected NPH, a controlled removal of CSF through a lumbar puncture helps show whether walking and thinking improve.
Treatment Options
Medicines cannot cure hydrocephalus, so treatment for fluid build-up in the brain is surgical. Shunt surgery places a thin tube that drains excess cerebrospinal fluid to another part of the body, most often the abdomen, in what is called a ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt. In selected patients, endoscopic third ventriculostomy (ETV) makes a small opening inside the brain to let fluid escape without a shunt.
VP Shunt Surgery
Before surgery, the team reviews scans, arranges blood tests and an anaesthetic assessment, and gives fasting instructions. Families are told plainly that a shunt is usually a long-term device and what risks go with it. Questions about costs and insurance paperwork are best raised at this stage.
During surgery, under general anaesthesia, a thin catheter is placed into the ventricle through a small opening in the skull and led under the skin to the abdominal cavity, where the body absorbs the fluid and pressure inside the head eases. Some patients may receive a programmable valve, whose setting can be changed afterwards with an external magnetic device, without another operation. That helps when a patient is draining too much or too little.
After surgery, patients are monitored in hospital, wound care is explained and activity is resumed gradually. Follow-up visits include scans and, for programmable valves, checks of the setting. Families are taught the warning signs of a shunt problem. Headache and other symptoms often ease as pressure settles, though how quickly varies from person to person.
Revision Shunt Surgery
A shunt is a mechanical device, and over the years it may need attention. Common reasons include:
- Blockage of the catheter or valve
- Disconnection or fracture of the tubing
- Infection
- Over-drainage or under-drainage, causing headaches or a return of the original symptoms
- Tubing that a growing child has outgrown
Warning signs are the return of the original symptoms, such as headache, vomiting or drowsiness, or fever, redness or swelling along the shunt track. Revision may mean replacing a single blocked part or the whole system. Infection usually calls for antibiotics and, often, temporary removal of the shunt with external drainage before a new one is placed.
Hydrocephalus & Shunt Surgery Treatment at CritiCare Asia Hospitals, Kurla, Mumbai
At CritiCare Asia Hospitals, Kurla, care starts with working out why fluid has built up, since the cause shapes the choice between a shunt, ETV or observation. The neurosurgical team explains the options in plain terms, including what a shunt can and cannot do, how long it is expected to stay in place and what follow-up it needs. Questions about costs and insurance documentation can be raised before surgery is scheduled. Children and adults are managed with different priorities, because a growing child's shunt needs a different long-term watch from an older adult's. If you or your child has a shunt and the old symptoms are returning, or you suspect hydrocephalus, book an assessment with a neurosurgeon in Mumbai at CritiCare Asia Hospitals, Kurla.