This study was done retrospectively to evaluate the ventriculoperitoneal CSF shunt infection in our shunt practice. The study conducted on 197 infants and children with hydrocephalus who were treated by ventriculoperitoneal shunt surgery from 1997 to 200 1. Shunt infection occurred in 45 patients ( 22.8%). Age of the patients ranged between 2 months and 14 years. The peak incidence of shunt infection occurred in the first 2 years of life (66.7%). The highest incidence of shunt infection was in infants 6 months or less of age, in postmeningitic patients as compared to other etiologies of hydrocephalus and in shunt revisions. Corticosteroid therapy played an important role in predisposing to shunt infection in patients with hydrocephalus due to tumors. Our patients with shunt infection were treated by different methods of treatment. The best method of treatment was shunt removal and antibiotics followed by delayed new shunt replacement, as high cure rate was achieved by this method (81 %), while antibiotics alone without shunt removal had a high incidence of reCurrence of infection. External ventricular drainage had unfavorable outcome. The overall mortality was 20%. Shunt infection is still a serious complication in pediatric cerebrospinal fluid shunt surgery, for this reason, prevention of shunt infection is a corner stone in CSF shunt surgery. Early diagnosis and prompt aggressive treatment of this serious complication may achieve a favorable outcome. |
