Vp Shunt Uptodate
The shunt tap may be normal with negative cultures if a retrograde infection has not yet developed in the patient.
Vp shunt uptodate. Nurses may care for patients who have undergone shunt placement or revision. As the name suggests a catheter is placed with its tip in the ventricle. Ventriculoatrial shunt placement enables cerebrospinal fluid csf to flow from the cerebral ventricular system to the atrium of the heart.
It s estimated up to 4 in 10 shunts will malfunction in the first year after surgery. Sometimes a scan after the operation shows the shunt is not in the best position and further surgery is needed to reposition it. The external portion of the catheter is connected to a valve that regulates the flow of csf based on a preset pressure.
Internalized shunts most commonly drain into the peritoneum ventriculoperitoneal vp shunt although less commonly they drain into the vascular space ventriculoatrial va shunt or the pleural space ventriculopleural shunt. Ventriculoatrial shunt placement is indicated for hydrocephalus which is among the most common conditions encountered in neurosurgical practice. A shunt is a delicate piece of equipment that can malfunction usually by becoming blocked or infected.
Ventriculoperitoneal vp shunts are a device used to shunt cerebrospinal fluid in the treatment of hydrocephalus. Hydrocephalus is a disorder in which an excessive amount of cerebrospinal fluid csf accumulates within the cerebral ventricles and or subarachnoid spaces resulting in ventricular dilation and increased intracranial pressure icp the physiology pathogenesis and etiology of hydrocephalus will be reviewed here. This article discusses the indications for vps placement in adults possible complications and nursing care for patients following a shunt placement procedure.
Ventriculoperitoneal shunts with distal occlusion and without an obvious mechanical cause and with no symptoms or signs of infection have been associated with infection. A ventriculoperitoneal shunt vps is the most common type of implanted cerebrospinal fluid shunt system. Berger a weninger m reinprecht a et al.