RT Book, Section
A1 Hart, Jessica K.
A1 Shah, Samir S.
A2 Shah, Samir S.
SR Print(0)
ID 6927486
T1 Chapter 70. Cerebrospinal Fluid Shunt Infections
T2 Pediatric Practice: Infectious Disease
YR 2009
FD 2009
PB The McGraw-Hill Companies
PP New York, NY
SN 978-0-07-148924-9
LK accesspediatrics.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=6927486
RD 2024/04/19
AB Cerebrospinal  fluid  (CSF),  or  ventricular,  shunts  are  the  predominant  mode  of  therapy  for  children  with  hydrocephalus.  Common  causes  of  hydrocephalus  in  children  include  myelomeningocele,  meningocele,  obstructive  or  communicating  hydrocephalus,  intraventricular  hemorrhage,  congenital  cyst,  and  central  nervous  system  tumors.1  The  majority  of  shunts  are  inserted  in  the  perinatal  period.  The  shunts  divert  CSF  away  from  the  ventricles,  preventing  increases  in  intracranial  pressure  that  lead  to  neurologic  sequelae.  The  typical  CSF  shunt  has  a  proximal  portion  that  enters  the  CSF  space,  an  intermediate  reservoir  that  lies  outside  the  skull  but  underneath  the  skin,  and  a  distal  portion  that  terminates  in  either  the  peritoneal  (ventriculoperioteal  [VP]  shunt),  vascular  (ventriculoatrial  shunt;  VA  shunt),  or  pleural  space  (Figure  70–1).