Elsevier

Surgical Neurology

Volume 15, Issue 4, April 1981, Pages 283-293
Surgical Neurology

Diagnosis of hydrocephalus by CSF pulse-wave analysis: A clinical study*

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0090-3019(81)80009-2Get rights and content

Pulsatility of the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is augmented in hydrocephalus. Analysis of pulsatility, including the CSF wave-form, may be a more valid criterion for the diagnosis of hydrocephalus than mean CSF pressure. To test this possibiliey, CSF pressures were measured in 118 patients with presumed hydrocephalus. The pressure measurements included baseline mean pressure and pulse pressure, responses to jugular compression, and CSF wave analysis (amplitude and peak latency). Four groups of pressure recordings were identified and matched with four clinical groups: normal, arrested hydrocephalus, communicating hydrocephalus, and aqueduct stenosis hydrocephalus. The CSF pulse pressure and systolic slope form were highly reliable in the diagnosis of hydrocephalus, whereas mean CSF pressure was not reliable.

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    *

    Supported by the Schulte Research Institute, Santa Barbara, CA.

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