Intracranial Pressure Monitoring In Children Research Articles

Telemetric ICP monitoring in children: a national questionnaire-based study.

Telemetric monitoring of intracranial pressure (ICP) facilitates long-term measurements and home monitoring, thus potentially reducing diagnostic imaging and acute hospital admissions in favour of outpatient appointments. Especially in paediatric patients, telemetric ICP monitoring requires a high level of collaboration and compliance from patients and parents. In this study, we aim to systematically investigate (1) patient and parent perception of telemetric ICP system utility and (2) hospital contact history and thus the potential cost-benefit of telemetric ICP monitoring in paediatric patients with a cerebrospinal fluid disorder. We conducted a nationwide questionnaire study, including paediatric patients with either a current or previous telemetric ICP sensor and their parents. Additionally, a retrospective review of electronic health records for all included children was performed. We included 16 children (age range 3-16 years), with a total of 41 telemetric ICP sensors implanted. Following sensor implantation, the frequency of telephone contacts and outpatient visits increased. No corresponding decrease in hospital admissions or total length of stay was found.The telemetric ICP sensor provided most parents with an improved sense of security and was seen as a necessary and valuable tool in treatment guidance. The size and shape of the sensor itself were reported as disadvantages, while the external monitoring equipment was reported as easy to use but too large and heavy for a child to carry. Though, in quantitative terms, there was no cost-benefit of the telemetric ICP sensor, it contributed to extended parental involvement and a sense of improved safety.

Current practice of intracranial pressure monitoring in children with severe traumatic brain injury-a nationwide prospective surveillance study in Germany.

For management of severe traumatic brain injuries (sTBI) in children, the overall level of evidence to guide diagnostic and therapeutic procedures is low. Since 2016, international guidelines have subsequently suggested invasive intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring in patients with initial Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) ≤8. In Germany, ICP monitoring was an individual case decision from 2011 until the 2022 update of the German pediatric TBI guideline. The aim of this study was to evaluate current clinical practice of invasive ICP monitoring in Germany in children <10 years with respect to guideline recommendations. Anonymized clinical data on sTBI cases <10 years of age were collected in a nationwide prospective surveillance study via the German Pediatric Surveillance Unit ESPED from July 2019 until June 2022. Inclusion criteria for the surveillance study were sTBI (initial GCS ≤8) or neurosurgery following TBI. For this analysis, only cases with GCS ≤8 were subject to the present analysis. Descriptive analyses were performed to assess the proportion of ICP monitored patients and describe the cohort. Out of 217 reported cases, 102 cases met the inclusion criteria and thus qualified for ICP monitoring. Of these, 37 (36%) received ICP monitoring. Monitored patients were older, had lower median GCS values at presentation (4 vs. 5), higher mortality (32% vs. 22%), and were more frequently diagnosed with cerebral edema (68% vs. 37%). In children <10 years with sTBI, the present clinical management regarding ICP monitoring deviates from the current German national and international guidelines. The reasons remain unclear, with the low level of evidence in the field of ICP monitoring and the recency of changes in guideline recommendations as potential contributors. Prospective interventional studies should elucidate the benefit of ICP monitoring and ICP directed therapies to provide evidence-based recommendations on ICP monitoring.

Parent perception of telemetric intracranial pressure monitoring in children - A qualitative case study

IntroductionTelemetric monitoring of intracranial pressure (ICP) in children with a complex cerebrospinal disorder might help parents distinguish acute and potential life-threatening symptoms of hydrocephalus from other illnesses. Research questionWhat is patient and parent perceptions of system utility of telemetric ICP monitoring, and how does a long-term telemetric implant influence daily life of both patients and their families? Material and methodsA qualitative case study design with a focus group interview including parents of children with a complex cerebrospinal fluid disorder and an implanted telemetric ICP sensor. ResultsThree parents participated. Based on thematic analysis, three themes were created: ‘Daily living with telemetric ICP monitoring’, ‘Parenting a child with a CSF disorder’, and ‘The healthy sibling’. The ICP sensor provided the parents with security and made them trust their intuition, while the possibility of home monitoring ensured stability for the entire family and had a calming effect on healthy siblings. Home monitoring was seen as the system's greatest advantages, whereas size, weight, and functionality of the external monitoring equipment were highlighted as disadvantages. Discussion and conclusionAll parents supported the telemetric ICP sensor as a valued tool in treatment guidance of their child and stated that advantages exceeded disadvantages. It was stated that the possibility of conducting ICP measurements at home reduced the need for acute hospital admissions, which consequently led to a more stable daily life for the entire family. Suggestions regarding technical improvements with focus on more compatible external monitoring equipment were raised by all parents included.

Parental involvement in decision making about intracranial pressure monitor placement in children with traumatic brain injury.

Little is known about how parents of children with traumatic brain injury (TBI) participate or feel they should participate in decision making regarding placing an intracranial pressure (ICP) monitor. The objective of this study was to identify the perspectives and decisional or information needs of parents whose child sustained a TBI and may require an ICP monitor. This was a qualitative study at one US level I pediatric trauma center. The authors conducted in-depth semistructured interviews with 1) parents of critically injured children who have sustained a TBI and 2) clinicians who regularly care for children with TBI. The authors interviewed 10 parents of 7 children (60% were mothers and 80% were white) and 28 clinicians (17 ICU clinicians and 11 surgeons). Overall, the authors found concordance between and among parents and clinicians about parental involvement in ICP monitor decision making. Parents and clinicians agreed that decision making about ICP monitoring in children who have suffered TBI is not and should not be shared between the parents and clinicians. The concordance was represented in 3 emergent themes. Parents wanted transparency, communication, and information (theme 2), but the life-threatening context of this decision (theme 1) created an environment where all involved reflected a clear preference for paternalism (theme 3). The clear and concordant preference for clinician paternalistic decision making coupled with the parents' needs to be informed suggests that a decision support tool for this decision should be clinician facing and should emphasize transparency in collaborative decision making between clinicians.

Telemetric intracranial pressure monitoring in children.

Repeated intracranial pressure (ICP) measurements are essential in treatment of patients with complex cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) disorders. These patients often have a long surgical history with numerous invasive lumbar or intracranial pressure monitoring sessions and/or ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt revisions. Telemetric ICP monitoring might be an advantageous tool in treatment of these patients. In this paper, we evaluate our experience with this technology in paediatric patients. During a 4-year period, we implanted telemetric ICP sensors (Raumedic NEUROVENT-P-tel) in 20 paediatric patients to minimise the number of future invasive procedures. Patients were diagnosed with hydrocephalus, idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) or an arachnoid cyst. Most patients (85%) had a VP shunt at the time of sensor implantation. In total, 32 sensors were inserted in the 20 patients; the cause of re-implantation was technical malfunction of the implant. One sensor was explanted due to wound infection and one due to skin erosion. We experienced no complications directly related to the implantation/explantation procedures. A total of 149 recording sessions were conducted, including 68 home monitoring sessions. The median implantation period was 523days with a median duration of clinical use at 202days. The most likely consequence of a recording session was non-surgical treatment alteration (shunt valve adjustment or acetazolamide dose adjustment). Telemetric ICP monitoring in children is safe and potentially decreases the number of invasive procedures. We find that telemetric ICP monitoring aids the clinical management of patients with complex CSF disorders and improves everyday life for both patient and parents. It allows continuous ICP measurement in the patient's home and thereby potentially reducing hospitalisations, leading to significant cost savings.

Intracranial Pressure Monitoring in Children with Severe Traumatic Brain Injury: A Retrospective Study.

Introduction:There is a paucity of literature on intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring in children. The aim of this study was to ascertain whether ICP monitoring is useful in children with severe traumatic brain injury (TBI).Materials and Methods:Medical records of children between 1 and 12 years, admitted to neurocritical care unit with severe TBI in 2 years, were reviewed. The children were divided into two groups: study group (ICP monitored) and control group (ICP not monitored). Admission demographics, vital parameters, and computed tomographic scan findings were recorded. In the study group, date of ICP catheter insertion/removal with ICP values and treatment carried out for increased ICP were noted. Data on tracheostomy, duration of mechanical ventilation, hospital stay, and outcome at discharge were noted.Results:Demographic variables were comparable between the two groups. When adjusted for death, no significant difference was observed between the study and the control groups in median duration of mechanical ventilation: 35 days (95% confidence interval [CI]: 12–73) versus 55 days (95% CI: 29–55) (P = 0.96), hospital stay: 36 days (95% CI: 12–73) versus 58 days (95% CI: 29–58) (P = 0.96), and time to tracheostomy: 6 days (95% CI: 5–8) versus 5 days (95% CI: 4–7) (P = 0.49). Mortality rates, incidence of cranial surgeries, and outcome at discharge were also comparable.Conclusion:ICP monitoring did not reduce the incidence of death, cranial surgeries, duration of mechanical ventilation, hospital stay, or improve the outcome at discharge in children with severe TBI.

Complications following intracranial pressure monitoring in children: a 6-year single-center experience.

OBJECTIVE Intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring is an important tool in the neurosurgeon's armamentarium and is used for a wide range of indications. There are many different ICP monitors available, of which fiber-optic intraparenchymal devices are very popular. Here, the authors document their experience performing ICP monitoring from 2005 to 2015 and specifically complication rates following insertion of the Microsensor ICP monitor. METHODS A retrospective case series review of all patients who underwent ICP monitoring over a 10-year period from 2005 to 2015 was performed. RESULTS There were 385 separate operations with an overall complication rate of 8.3% (32 of 385 cases). Hardware failure occurred in 4.2% of cases, the CSF leakage rate was 3.6%, the postoperative hemorrhage rate was 0.5%, and there was 1 case of infection (0.3% of cases). Only patients with hardware problems required further surgery as a result of their complications, and no patient had any permanent morbidity or mortality from the procedure. Younger patients (p = 0.001) and patients with pathologically high ICP (13% of patients with high ICP vs 6.5% of patients with normal ICP; p = 0.04) were significantly more likely to have complications. There was no significant difference in the complication rates between general neurosurgical patients and craniofacial patients (7.6% vs 8.8%, respectively; p = 0.67). CONCLUSIONS Intraparenchymal ICP monitoring is a safe procedure associated with low complications and morbidity in the pediatric craniofacial and neurosurgical population and should be offered to appropriate patients to assess ICP with the reassurance of the safety record reported in this study.

Noninvasive Transfontanelle Monitoring of the Intracerebral Pressure in Comparison With an Invasive Intradural Intracranial Pressure Device: A Prospective Study.

We previously introduced a novel noninvasive technique of intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring in children with open fontanelles. To compare the ICP obtained by our new technique to the ICP derived from an intradurally implanted ICP measurement device (external ventricular drain, subdural ICP device). Children with open fontanelles and need of intracranial monitoring were included in this study. A standard ICP probe was placed upon the frontal fontanelle and data were compared with the values recorded by an already invasively implanted subdural ICP technique. The 2 methods of ICP measurement were evaluated using the correlation coefficient, Bland and Altman method and method comparison by Carstensen. Five children under the age of 1 year with an open frontal fontanelle were included in this study. Three were male and 2 were female. Mean age was 7 months. A total of 139 pairs of measurements were assessed. Mean transfontanelle ICP was 7.6 mm Hg. Mean ICP measured subdurally was 5.4 mm Hg. The correlation analysis showed a correlation coefficient of 0.7. The Bland-Altman plot revealed a good accuracy of the new method with >95% of the values within the limits of agreement. An additional method comparison analysis confirmed the finding of accurate ICP measurements between both applied methods. The noninvasive transfontanelle ICP monitoring method displayed a high validity and reliability as proven by correlation analysis. This novel technique might therefore be an interesting and promising tool for noninvasive ICP monitoring in children. But further research is necessary to evaluate the accuracy of this technique in children with elevated ICP.

Functional Outcome After Intracranial Pressure Monitoring for Children With Severe Traumatic Brain Injury

ImportanceIntracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring is a mainstay of therapy for children with traumatic brain injury (TBI), but its overall association with patient outcome is unclear.ObjectiveTo test the hypothesis that ICP monitoring is associated with improved functional survival of children with severe TBI.Design, Setting, and ParticipantsA propensity-weighted effectiveness analysis was conducted using 2 linked national databases with data from 30 US children’s hospitals from January 1, 2007, to December 31, 2012, on 3084 children with severe TBI. Clinical events including neurosurgical procedures were identified using validated computable phenotypes. Data analysis was conducted from September 1, 2016, to March 1, 2017.ExposurePlacement of an ICP monitor.Main Outcomes and MeasuresA composite of hospital mortality, discharge to hospice, or survival with placement of new tracheostomy and gastrostomy tubes.ResultsOf the 3084 children in the study (1128 girls and 1956 boys; mean [SD] age, 7.03 [5.44] years), 1002 (32.4%) underwent ICP monitoring, with substantial hospital variation (6% to 50% by hospital). Overall, 484 children (15.7%) experienced the primary composite outcome. A propensity approach using matching weights generated good covariate balance between those who did and those who did not undergo ICP monitoring. Using a propensity-weighted logistic regression model clustered by hospital, no statistically significant difference was found in functional survival between monitored and unmonitored patients (odds ratio of poor outcome among those who underwent ICP monitoring, 1.31; 95% CI, 0.99-1.74). In a prespecified secondary analysis, no difference in mortality was found (odds ratio, 1.16; 95% CI, 0.89-1.50). Prespecified subgroup analyses of children younger and older than 2 years of age and among those with unintentional and inflicted (intentional) injuries also showed no difference in outcome with ICP monitoring.Conclusions and RelevanceWith the use of linked national data and validated computable phenotypes, no evidence was found of a benefit from ICP monitoring on functional survival of children with severe TBI. Intracranial pressure monitoring is a widely but inconsistently used technology with incompletely demonstrated effectiveness. A large prospective cohort study or randomized trial is needed.

Research progress of intracranial pressure monitoring in children

Intracranial hypertension is one of the most common pediatric acute and severe diseases.Intracranial pressure(ICP) monitoring can dynamically evaluate the changes of the patients with brain injury, calculate the cerebral perfusion pressure, guide the clinical treatment.ICP monitoring can not reflect the cerebral microvascular dysfunction and cell dysfunction, so it is necessary to carry out multimodality monitoring based on ICP monitoring.The information integration of ICP monitoring and multimodality monitoring is helpful to further understand the pathophysiological mechanism of brain injury, and it is also helpful for individualized treatment of patients. Key words: Intracranial pressure; Monitoring; Children; Outcome,

Abstract PR141

Background & Objectives: There is a paucity of literature with regard to intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring in children. The present study aims to find out the utility of ICP monitoring in children with severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). Materials & Methods: Medical records of children of one to 12 years admitted to neurointensive care unit with severe TBI over a period of two years were reviewed. The children were divided into two groups (Study Group: ICP monitored and Control Group: ICP was not monitored). Admission demographics, vital parameters, computed tomographic (CT) scan findings were recorded. In the study group, date of ICP catheter insertion/removal with ICP values and treatment for increased ICP, was noted. Data on tracheostomy, duration of mechanical ventilation, hospital stay, outcome at-discharge, were noted. Appropriate statistical analysis was done. Results: Demographic variables were comparable in between the two groups. When adjusted for death, there was no significant difference in median duration of mechanical ventilation [35(95%CI 12–73) days in study group vs 55(95%CI 29–55) days in control group; p=0.96], hospital stay [36(95%CI 12–73) days in study group vs 58(95%CI 29–58) days in control group; p=0.96]; time to tracheostomy was 6(95%CI 5–8) days in study group vs 5(95%CI 4–7) days in control group (p=0.49). Mortality rates, incidence of cranial surgeries, outcome at discharge were comparable in both the groups. Age at admission and initial GCS 3–5 were the only predictors significant for outcome at discharge on multivariate analysis. Conclusion: In this study, ICP monitoring was safely carried out in children with severe TBI. However, this monitoring did not reduce the incidence of death, cranial surgeries, duration of mechanical ventilation, hospital stay, or improve the outcome at discharge, when compared to similar group of children who were managed without ICP monitoring. The GCS score and age at admission were the main predictors of outcome at discharge. Disclosure of Interest: None declared

Intracranial pressure monitoring among children with severe traumatic brain injury.

OBJECT Well-designed studies linking intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring with improved outcomes among children with severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) are lacking. The main objective of this study was to examine the relationship between ICP monitoring in children and in-hospital mortality following severe TBI. METHODS An observational study was conducted using data derived from 153 adult or mixed (adult and pediatric) trauma centers participating in the American College of Surgeons (ACS) Trauma Quality Improvement Program (TQIP) and 29 pediatric trauma centers participating in the pediatric pilot TQIP between 2010 and 2012. Random-intercept multilevel modeling was used to examine the association between ICP monitoring and in-hospital mortality among children with severe TBI ≤16 years of age after adjusting for important confounders. This association was evaluated at the patient level and at the hospital level. In a sensitivity analysis, this association was reexamined in a propensity-matched cohort. RESULTS A total of 1705 children with severe TBI were included in the study cohort. The overall in-hospital mortality was 14.3% of patients (n = 243), whereas the mortality of the 273 patients (16%) who underwent invasive ICP monitoring was 11% (n = 30). After adjusting for patient- and hospital-level characteristics, ICP monitoring was associated with lower in-hospital mortality (adjusted OR 0.50; 95% CI 0.30-0.85; p = 0.01). It is possible that patients who were managed with ICP monitoring were selected because of an anticipated favorable or unfavorable outcome. To further address this potential selection bias, the analysis was repeated with the hospital-specific rate of ICP monitoring use as the exposure. The adjusted OR for death of children treated at high ICP-use hospitals was 0.49 compared with those treated at low ICP-use hospitals (95% CI 0.31-0.78; p = 0.003). Variations in ICP monitoring use accounted for 15.9% of the interhospital variation in mortality among children with severe TBI. Similar results were obtained after analyzing the data using propensity score-matching methods. CONCLUSIONS In this observational study, ICP monitoring use was associated with lower hospital mortality at both the patient and hospital levels. However, the contribution of variable ICP monitoring rates to interhospital variation in pediatric TBI mortality was modest.

ICP monitoring in children: why are we not adhering to guidelines?

Despite pediatric guidelines, variability exists in the management of severe traumatic brain injury (TBI), as somewhere between 7 and 60% of children undergo intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring. Reasons for this low adherence to TBI management guidelines remain unclear. The objective of this study was to evaluate the current practices at CHU Sainte-Justine with regards to ICP monitoring in severe TBI and explore the reasons why ICP monitoring is not undertaken. A retrospective review was conducted of all patients age 1 month to 18 years, with severe TBI (Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) ≤8) from 2007 to 2014. Presence of ICP monitoring, head imaging reports, and reasons for lack of monitoring were recorded. Sixty-four patients with severe TBI were admitted. Twenty (31%) patients had invasive ICP monitoring in the first 6 h and 5 in the following 24 h. Improvement of the GCS on arrival to tertiary care center (20%, n = 13) and moribund status (20%, n = 13) were the two main reasons ICP monitoring was not undertaken. Fourteen patients (21%) with reassuring cerebral tomography (Rotterdam scores 1-3) and median GCS 7 (IQR 6-8) were initially followed with clinical surveillance, five of which ended up with an ICP monitor (>6 h). Our study confirms that many children with severe TBI do not undergo ICP monitoring, mainly due to rapid improvement or moribund status. A subgroup of patients, with reassuring cerebral CT scan, was not monitored. Further research is necessary to assess if imaging should be considered in ICP indication, as in adult guidelines.

Bedside burr hole for intracranial pressure monitoring performed by pediatric intensivists in children with CNS infections in a resource-limited setting: 10-year experience at a single center.

Intracranial pressure monitoring can help in early identification of raised intracranial pressure and in setting more informed goals for treatment. We describe our 10-year experience of bedside burr holes performed by pediatric intensivists to establish intracranial pressure monitoring in children with CNS infections in a resource-limited setting and the technical difficulties and complications encountered. Descriptive study of prospectively recorded data. PICU of a tertiary care academic institute. Consecutive comatose patients with raised intracranial pressure who underwent intracranial pressure monitoring from 2004 to 2013. An intraparenchymal (1.2 mm) or an intraventricular transducer (3.4 mm) (Codman) was placed by a pediatric intensivist through a micro burr hole using a standard protocol. Technical difficulties during the procedure and complications were recorded. Over 10 years, 265 intracranial pressure catheters were placed in 259 patients, mainly for acute CNS infections (n = 242, 93.4%). Median age of patients was 4.8 years, youngest being 6 weeks; 21 patients (8.1%) were younger than 1 year. Intraparenchymal transducer was used in 252 patients (97.3%). Median (interquartile range) duration of intracranial pressure monitoring was 96 hours (72-144 hr). Complications were seen in 3.5% of patients (n = 9/259); the incidence was 0.28 per 1,000 hours of intracranial pressure monitoring. Procedure-related ventriculitis occurred in three of seven patients (42.8%) with intraventricular catheter, in contrast to none in patients with intraparenchymal transducer. Overall mortality was 32.8% (n = 85). On Cox-regression analysis, "blood component therapy" was an independent predictor of poor outcome defined as death or severe neurodisability (adjusted hazard ratio, 1.58; 95% CI, 1.16-2.16; p = 0.004). In a resource-limited setting, pediatric intensivists can safely and successfully perform burr holes at bedside for establishing intraparenchymal intracranial pressure monitoring in children with acute CNS infections. However, our data do not support placement of ventriculostomy catheters by pediatric intensivists in similar settings.

Application of intracranial pressure monitoring in children with severe traumatic brain injury

Intracranial pressure monitoring is a mainstay in the management of children with severe traumatic brain injury.The research issues on the intracranial pressure monitoring have become important for neurocritical care.This paper has reviewed the significance of intracranial pressure monitoring in children with severe traumatic brain injury. Key words: Traumatic brain injury; Intracranial pressure monitoring ; Children

Chapter 3. Indications for intracranial pressure monitoring

Chapter 3. Indications for intracranial pressure monitoring

Invasive versus noninvasive intracranial pressure monitoring in children with acute liver failure

Devictor, Denis MD, PhD; Durand, Philippe MD; Tissieres, Pierre MD, PhD Author Information

Invasive versus noninvasive intracranial pressure monitoring in children with acute liver failure

Invasive versus noninvasive intracranial pressure monitoring in children with acute liver failure

Intracranial pressure monitoring in children: Back to basics*

Intracranial pressure monitoring in children: Back to basics*

The relationship between basal cisterns on CT and time-linked intracranial pressure in paediatric head injury

Although intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring is a cornerstone of care for severe traumatic brain injury (TBI), the indications for ICP monitoring in children are unclear. Often, decisions are based on head computed tomography (CT) scan characteristics. Arguably, the patency of the basal cisterns is the most commonly used of these signs. Although raised ICP is more likely with obliterated basal cisterns, the implications of open cisterns are less clear. We examined the association between the status of perimesencephalic cisterns and time-linked ICP values in paediatric severe TBI. ICP data linked to individual head CT scans were reviewed. Basal cisterns were classified as open or closed by blinded reviewers. For the initial CT scan, we examined ICP values for the first 6 h after monitor insertion. For follow-up scans, we examined ICP values 3 h before and after scanning. Mean ICP and any episode of ICP ≥ 20 mmHg during this period were recorded. Data from 104 patients were examined. Basal cisterns were patent in 51.72% of scans, effaced in 34.48% and obliterated in 13.79%. Even when cisterns were open, more than 40% of scans had at least one episode of ICP ≥ 20 mmHg, and 14% of scans had a mean ICP ≥ 20 mmHg. The specificity of open cisterns in predicting ICP < 20 mmHg was poor (57.9%). Age-related data were worse. Children with severe TBI frequently may have open basal cisterns on head CT despite increased ICP. Open cisterns should not discourage ICP monitoring.