Question
A 46-year-old patient recently experienced severe headaches, brain swelling, and dizziness, suspected of having hydrocephalus, and is seeking treatment advice.
Answer
The treatment of hydrocephalus can be divided into non-surgical and surgical treatments. For mild hydrocephalus, non-surgical treatments such as dehydration therapy and comprehensive supportive therapy are usually adopted first. When intracranial pressure is too high (water column over 250mm) or non-surgical treatment is ineffective, it is recommended to undergo surgical treatment. For severe hydrocephalus, if the head circumference exceeds 50cm, the thickness of the cortical atrophy is less than 1cm, and there are serious functional impairments and deformities, the surgical outcome may be poor. Surgical treatments often include cerebrospinal fluid diversion procedures, such as ventriculo-peritoneal shunting, ventriculo-sagittal sinus shunting, and ventriculo-peritoneal shunting. Among them, ventriculo-peritoneal shunting is relatively safe with fewer complications and is therefore used more widely.