Long-term outcomes of Ventriculoperitoneal Shunt Surgery in Patients with Hydrocephalus

Abstract

For the treatment of hydrocephalus, VP shunt surgery is considered the most appropriate method of treatment, but this treatment has a number of complications, it needs to be replaced after the failure of the previous shunt.  Objective: To evaluate the different regulatory factors involved in the failure of Shunt surgery, the initiation points of shunt failure, and the number of shunt surgeries required after first shunt treatment. The time duration required for shunt failure was also considered to evaluate the lifelong experience with this VP shunt surgery. Methods: It is a retrospective study with a statistical approach. This study was conducted in Neurosurgery unit, Mardan medical complex / Bacha khan medical college, Mardan for the Duration of One year August 2020 to July 2021. Patients suffering from hydrocephalus undergoing shunt surgery visited the neurosurgery unit of Mardan Medical complex, Bacha Khan Medical College were included in the study. Complete information related to the etiology, imaging results, demographic distribution, surgery reports, and medical follow-ups were analyzed thoroughly. Results: About 25 patients having VP shunt surgery were selected; their average age was above 60 years. The median mean of the follow-ups was 6 and 9 respectively. Patients with having age of more than 18 years are considered adult patients and constituted of the 70 % of the total. The rate of shunt failure was estimated, it was about 46.2 %. The pediatric patients are more prone to shunt failure than the adult ones. Different factors are involved in shunt replacement but age and sex have a major role. Shunt replacement time is quite low in young patients. While in case of age, male patients have a greater number of shunt replacements within their lifespan. Conclusion: The results inferred that age has a particular role in the triggering of shunt failure, many other factors are also associated independently to increase the rate of shunt failure. There is a need for controlled studies to understand the link between risk factors and shunt failure rate.