Hydrocephalus
By: Tierza Flock
Introduction
A shunt is basically a thin flexible but sturdy plastic tube usually goes from the brain the neck and then to the abdomen. A shunt system consists of the shunt, a catheter, and a valve. One end of the catheter is placed in a ventricle thats alive inside the brain. The other end of the catheter is commonly placed within the abdominal area. A valve located along the catheter there is flow and regulates the rate of CSF flow. The shunt is the closest "cure" When you are diagnosed with
Hydrocephalus but, it is never actually cured.
What a Shunt is all about?
Information On a Shunt
You probably have heard the name but not sure what happens. The term hydrocephalus is derived from the Greek words "hydro" meaning water and "cephalus" meaning head.Congenital hydrocephalus is present at birth and may be caused by a few events or influences that occur during fetal development, or genetic abnormalities(rare). Hydrocephalus develops at the time of birth or at some point afterward. This type of hydrocephalus can affect individuals of all ages typically in an fetus before they are born.Hydrocephalus affects approximately 1 in every 500 children which that is not alot considering there are many many children on our earth.
Symptoms
The shunt in a X-ray
This is a X-ray of a person who is affected by hydrocephalus. The shunt is the whitish tube you see.
The Different and "NORMAL"
The one on the left is a normal brain and the one on the right is contamitnated by Hydrocephalus. The brain does not have any operation done yet.
Before it is put in to the brain
Here is what a shunt looks like before its surgically put in place and usually leads to the stomach. The shunt can be felt in the skull and the neck.
Facts About How Hydrocephalus Affects Me
Many people do not know that i am affected by this condition everyday because its not somthing that is really "out" there. I have congential Hydrocephalus meaning lifetime and basically limited to what i am able to do. I personally do not talk about the conditon and how it effects me everydaybecause many people judge me for it. Its limiting what i do and what activitys I choose to do on a daily basis. I have had a total of nine nurological surgeries that have happend in my sixteen years of being alive. I am very careful of what I do such as in gym class and any athletic, or contact sports. (ect).