by Jennifer Kirkman

Created on: August 05, 2009   Last Updated: August 06, 2009

Hydrocephalus is a term I know very well since I have it myself. I had it after birth and had a shunt placement at 5 months old when it was discovered.My blockage was only partial, compared to some children born with it that have complete blockage, which leads to even more serious problems. The main central symptom of hydrocephalus is large head growth. My own head protruded sharply forward and back in a very abnormal way.

What happens in hydrocephalus is water on the brain. Congenital hydrocephalus happens the way mine did, at birth, or shortly after. The other kind of hydrocephalus is acquired. Adults can get acquired hydrocephalus from an injury to the head, having a stroke, brain infections, brain cancers and bleeding inside of the brain.

Since your cerebrospinal fluid is supposed to protect your brain, people with hydrocephalus have too much, and therefore it creates a very harmful and even life-threatening pressure on the brain. Pressure from hydrocephalus is very very painful. As a baby and little girl even after shunt placement I had:

1. Blurry vision

2. Severe headaches

3. Projectile vomiting for many hours on end

4. Trouble walking

5. Droopy eyes

6. Balance problems

These are typical signs of pressure on the brain. Even with the placement of a shunt which I still have today at age 42, there are times I still have pressure, though nothing like it was years ago.

The diagnosis of hydrocephalus today is made by a CT scan usually. This gives the doctors a clear picture of the brain and how much fluid is surrounding it.

Once hydrocephalus is determined, and it is not hard to do since the head growth is obvious, a shunt will be placed. The shunt first made shortly before my birth, was designed by a man with a son that had total blockage from hydrocephalus unlike myself. The shunt is a tube, very flexible and thin which drains the cerebrospinal fluid off the brain. There is a valve on one end of the shunt which is constantly working to keep the fluid away from the brain.

They now have another treatment which is known as endoscopic third ventriculostomy. This procedure places a puncture in the membrane on the bottom of the third ventricle. This creates a passage for extra cerebrospinal fluid to move away from the brain.

Shunts can become infected. As a youngster my parents has to always be aware of this problem. I never had an actual infection from the shunt though as some kids do. What typically happens is that there will be a fever present which is high, and also

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