Active clinical trials for "Hydrocephalus"

This study is to verify the use of a hand held tool to verify the new setting of a hydrocephalus shunt (proGAV). This tool would be used in place of an Xray of the patient's head, which is how settings are verified currently.

Post-Market Clinical Follow-up Registry of Patients with CODMAN CERTAS Plus Programmable Valves.

The study hypothesis is that an ultrasonic flow sensor can accurately measure flow in hydrocephalic shunts. The ultrasonic sensor will measure cerebro-spinal fluid drainage in hydrocephalus patients with external ventriculostomies and extra-ventricular drainage systems. The sensor measurements will be compared with the volume of fluid collected by the drainage bag. After a 24-hour measurement period, the doctor will change the drainage bag position to simulate the patient sitting up and leaning back, to see if this temporarily stops flow through the drainage line. This data will show whether the sensor accurately measures typical drainage flows seen in hydrocephalus patients. This research will help develop an implantable flow monitor for pediatric hydrocephalus patients.

The purpose of this Registry is to compare shunt/catheter-related infection rates among various shunt systems when used according to hospital standard of care to treat hydrocephalus.

This study compares the accuracy of fast magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) using the half Fourier single shot rapid acceleration with relaxation enhancement technique to ultrasound in the diagnosis of fetal abnormalities. The investigators' specific aim is to perform MRI examinations with ultrafast MRI on fetuses with sonographic morphologic abnormalities. The investigators' hypotheses are that 1) MRI will demonstrate fetal morphologic abnormalities; and 2) MRI will add additional information to the sonographic diagnosis which may directly affect maternal and/or neonatal care.

Idiopathic normal pressure hydrocephalus (INPH) is a treatable disease of the elderly, typically causing gait impariment, dementia and urinary incontinence. The objective of this study is to make an epidemiological survey of INPH in Umeå, Sweden. Subjects with self-perceived gait impairments will be identified through a questionnaire. They will go through clinical examinations and have an MRI of the brain. A control population will also be investigated to enable comparisons between the populations. The main hypothesis is that the prevalence of INPH in the population is higher than what is previoulsy known.

Objective: Patients with Idiopathic Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus are improved with shunt surgery. To increase the accuracy of the diagnosis, supplementary tests that characterize the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) dynamics are used. The infusion test is one of these, used for shunt surgery selection and postoperative evaluation of shunt function. Forty-eight patients that had a preoperative investigation because of communicating hydrocephalus at the university hospitals in Umeå and Uppsala, Sweden, participated in the study. The purpose of this study was to evaluate a new method, with a new infusion protocol and new analysis methods, and compare it to the current method.

This multicenter, prospective study of children with hydrocephalus will examine whether or not ventricle size is associated with poor cognitive outcomes. It is expected that results will indicate larger ventricular size at 6 months after surgery for the initial treatment of hydrocephalus will relate to poorer cognitive outcomes. This study is being conducted by the Hydrocephalus Clinical Research Network (HCRN), a network established to conduct multi-institutional clinical trials on pediatric hydrocephalus.

The purpose of the study is to determine whether an ultrasound of the eye can be used as a radiation-free alternative to X-ray to identify children with risk of shunt failure in the Emergency Department. Please note that a shunt is an artificial or natural channel running between two other channels.2. Briefly summarize how participants are recruited.

The brain and spinal cord are surrounded by fluid called cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The CSF flows through channels in the brain and around the spinal cord. Occasionally, people are born with malformations of these channels. Syringomyelia is a pocket within the CSF channels that results from abnormal CSF flow. Syringomyelia is associated with problems in the nervous system. Patients with syringomyelia may be unable to detect sensations of pain and heat. If the condition is not treated it can worsen. Treatment of this condition is surgical. It requires that the flow of CSF is returns to normal. There are many different treatment options, but no one procedure has been shown to be significantly better than any other. In this study, researchers would like to learn more about how the CSF pressure and flow contribute to the progression of syringomyelia. Ultrasounds and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) will be used to evaluate the anatomy of the brain. Researchers hope that information gathered about anatomy and measures of CSF pressure and flow can be used later to develop an optimal surgical treatment for syringomyelia.