Abstract
Ventriculoperitoneal shunt infection is a major complication and the main cause of shunt failure, contributing to a high rate of morbidity and mortality among patients requiring prolonged hospitalization. Shunt infection-related complications are considered a global burden of hydrocephalus worldwide. In our hospital, King Fahad Hospital of the University, the rate of infections in similar cases reached 8% during the period from 1999 to 2001; an increase in this rate was observed in the past two years.This study analyzed the infections that occur after ventriculoperitoneal shunt placement in patients with hydrocephalus and related conditions during the period from January 2012 to April 2017. The objectives of this study were to analyze the rate of cerebrospinal fluid infections in different age groups at the King Fahd Hospital of the University and to identify the causative pathogens and methods of reducing the rate and consequences of such infections. In this retrospective study, the electronic medical records of 266 patients were reviewed and those of 131 patients were included and analyzed. We found that the prevalence rate of shunt-related infections was 24.4%, which indicates the importance of this problem. Staphylococcus epidermidis is the most commonly implicated microorganism. The most affected age groups were those of preschool children and infants. Individuals who were older than 74 years were the least affected. It was found that delayed infections were the most common type of VP shunt infection among the study population and there was no difference in the most common organisms between early, delayed, and late infections. The mean duration of antibiotic treatment used was 19.76 days. In conclusion, postoperative infections are significantly common in patients who undergo shunt-related surgeries.
Highlights
A ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt is a medical apparatus that is utilized to relieve elevated intracranial pressure
As a difference in causative organisms between early, late, and delayed, 6/10 of early infections were caused by Staphylococcus epidermis and 7/8 late complications were caused by Staphylococcus epidermis while 9/12 of delayed infections were caused by Staphylococcus epidermis in addition to other infectious agents species
The rate of infection determined in the current study indicates the virulence of the causative organisms
Summary
A ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt is a medical apparatus that is utilized to relieve elevated intracranial pressure. There is a possibility that infections may be developed and spread locally from one site to another because of the disturbance created by surgical operations creating a possible scenario of a high infection rate. The symptoms of postoperative infections may be subtle or mild thereby patients often acclimatize with them and fail to seek medical attention such that the healthcare professionals can diagnose it and take the appropriate steps to manage it. Operations involving the parts of the body with less normal organisms result in the lowest number of postoperative infections. We will identify the difference between organisms that present as early, delayed, or late infections of VP shunt. We would like to clarify the differences between these organisms and their types and durations of antibiotics [1]
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