Having extensive experience with this condition, the team has conducted groundbreaking research that has advanced understanding of the disease and revolutionized the way CSF leaks are treated. Having treated more than 1,000 people with suspected or confirmed cerebrospinal fluid leak, patients travel to Duke from across the country and from Canada, Europe, the Far East, Africa, New Zealand, and Australia.įour Duke diagnostic and CT interventional neuroradiologists devote all of their time and energy to improving diagnosis and treatment for this debilitating disease. ![]() THE DUKE DIFFERENCEĭuke is one of only three centers in the country that has been working continuously on this problem over the past ten years. This lack of experience oftentimes means that patients are told to lie in bed indefinitely, with little other prospect for treatment. Even when the correct diagnosis is made, few physicians have experience in finding the source of the fluid leak and sealing it. Some may become suicidal because of the excruciating pain. They can become bedridden, consequently losing their jobs and becoming financially destitute. Patients can be of any age, but are often young or middle-aged and in the midst of the most productive years of their lives. Patients are often misdiagnosed with other headache conditions such as migraine, or even conditions like fibromyalgia or stroke. Although classic symptoms of CSF leaks are severe headaches that improve when lying down, a wide range of other symptoms that mimic other conditions can occur, making diagnosis difficult. Other causes of CSF leaks may be due to surgery or trauma.Once thought to be rare, we now recognize that this condition is much more common than previously thought. ![]() As a result of this leakage, patients with this condition suffer from debilitating headaches. This tear leads to leakage of the fluid that cushions the brain and spinal cord. A blue light filter system highlights the the presence of fluorescein.Spinal cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks, also known as Spontaneous Intracranial Hypotension, is a debilitating medical condition in which a small tear or hole forms in the outer membrane containing the fluid surrounding the spinal cord, often for no apparent reason. The CSF appears fluorescent green due to the administration of fluorescein through a lumbar drain. This video depicts endoscopic visualization of a skull base defect with an obvious CSF leak. ![]() In the past, this required open brain surgery (i.e., craniotomy) for repair, but today, almost all CSF leaks can be closed by working through the nose and sinuses with endoscopic instruments (i.e., no external incisions). In some patients, the CSF leak occurs spontaneously that is, the leakage of spinal fluid starts without an easily identifiable cause.īecause untreated CSF leaks can lead to meningitis and brain infection, repair of CSF leaks is recommended. Causes of CSF leak include trauma and both sinus and brain surgery. For a CSF leak to occur there has to be a breakdown in the barrier that separates these two spaces. ![]() The leakage of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF, more commonly known as spinal fluid) occurs when there is an abnormal connection between the CSF-containing space around the brain and the paranasal sinuses.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |