Medical Treatment

No drug or other medical treatment is known to work in NPH.

Surgery

Occasionally the cause of the hydrocephalus can be treated directly through surgery. For example, a brain tumor blocking drainage of the CSF can be removed. In most cases, however, the underlying problem is not known or cannot be treated. The treatment in these cases is a shunt operation.

A shunt is a thin tube that is implanted in the brain by a neurosurgeon. It is inserted into the ventricles to drain excess CSF away from the brain. The tube is routed under the skin from the head to another part of the body, usually the peritoneum (the lower belly). The shunt is equipped with a valve that opens to release fluid when the pressure builds up. The fluid drains harmlessly and is later absorbed by the bloodstream. The pressure setting on the valve sometimes must be readjusted. The newer shunts allow adjustment without another operation.

A shunt operation is not a cure. It does not treat the underlying cause of NPH. It can, however, relieve the symptoms. The shunt remains in place indefinitely. If properly implanted, the shunt often is not obvious to other people.

Shunt operations do not work for everyone with NPH. Many people who undergo a shunt operation have substantial symptom relief. In some, the symptoms improve and then start to worsen again. Others benefit little, if at all. Even the experts are not able to predict perfectly who will benefit and who will not. Many surgeons perform a spinal tap before surgery to test whether the symptoms get better with removal of fluid. In some cases, the person is hospitalized for a few days while fluid is drained slowly through a small tube called a catheter. This is another way of checking whether removing extra fluid will help symptoms.

The earlier the NPH is diagnosed, the better the chances that the surgery will help. In general, people with milder symptoms have better outcomes with this surgery. Like any surgery, the shunt operation can cause complications. Such complications include infection of the shunt and blood clots around the brain. Your neurologist or neurosurgeon will discuss the pros and cons of this operation and whether it might work for you.

Another operation is sometimes used instead of shunt placement. In endoscopic third ventriculostomy, an endoscope (thin tube with a lighted camera on the end) is used to create a small hole in the floor of the ventricles. The hole provides another way for CSF to drain from the brain.