Association between ventricular shunt catheter calcifications and the development of shunt fracture

Siddiqui, Mansoor A.; Hardy, Anna K.; Mercier, Philippe; Farmakis, Shannon G.

doi:10.1007/s00247-019-04488-0

Cited by 6 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Three case reports [4][5][6] and one small series [3] have described catheter calci cation as a late-onset complication following VP shunt insertion [3][4][5][6]. The management typically consisted of complete shunt removal, new shunt insertion or endoscopic third ventriculostomy [3].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The role of surgery in relieving calcified shunt site-related pain in patients with functioning VP shunt

et al. 2022

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Shunt calci cation is a known late sequela of ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt insertion and is associated with shunt malfunction. However, in some patients, while shunt functionality is preserved despite calci cation of the catheters, they experience nociceptive symptoms. In this paper, the authors present their surgical experience in managing patients with a functional VP shunt and experiencing pain secondary to shunt calci cation. MethodsWe analysed outcomes of patients presenting with pain at the level of a calci ed shunt who underwent surgical untethering of the calci ed catheter from the soft tissues. This procedure was commenced by the senior author in 2015. Patients were collected prospectively from the databases of two institutions. Evidence of shunt calci cation was con rmed on neuroimaging. ResultsSeven patients, two male and ve female were included. The mean age at untethering was 13.5 years. The mean time interval between primary shunt surgery and symptoms onset was twelve years (range 6-16 years).The commonest site of tethering was the neck (50%) followed by abdomen and chest (both 25%). Six patients underwent untethering of the catheter from soft tissues. One patient had removal of a redundant segment of calci ed shunt left in situ during a previous revision. All patients experienced pain relief following shunt untethering. ConclusionUntethering of calci ed VP shunt catheters from soft tissue can be considered an effective treatment of shunt site pain and offered to patients presenting with a functional VP shunt.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The calci cation of a ventriculoperitoneal shunt is part of the long-term natural history of the catheter and affects 12 per 100 shunt insertions, often developing between 2 to 9 years post-insertion [3,4]. Several studies have described VP shunt dysfunction, pain and skin irritation secondary to shunt calci cation [5,6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%