Intracranial Pressure Monitoring
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Arch Dis Child: first published as 10.1136/adc.59.5.486 on 1 May 1984. Downloaded from Archives of Disease in Childhood, 1984, 59, 486-488 Personal practice Intracranial pressure monitoring R A MINNS Department of Child Life and Health, University of Edinburgh Increasing awareness of the part played by raised puncture and with no undue abdominal compres- intracranial pressure in brain damage together with sion, flexion or extension of the neck. Where there clinical signs which are often unreliable and the is free communication between the spinal and static nature of ultrasound or computed tomography cranial compartments the measured pressure re- for what is essentially a dynamic problem have flects the intracranial pressure. A paper recording of meant that there is now widespread acceptance of a few minutes duration is made before cerebrospinal intracranial pressure monitoring in children. The fluid collection, with the transducer attached to the reasons for monitoring are to detect raised pressure, lumbar puncture needle by a three way connection. to quantitate this, and to determine the effectiveness The presence of a cardiorespiratory artefact verifies of treatment. the space and because there is no displacement of cerebrospinal fluid this method is theoretically safer. Techniques and indications The mean pressure is independent of the internal bore of the lumbar puncture needle, although This review article mentions only a few of the many oscillations wilJ be damped with fine bore needles. devices and techniques presently available for intra- This simple adaptation improves appreciably the cranial pressure monitoring. For routine clinical use routine practice of estimating cerebrospinal fluid the keynote should be simplicity-in the type of# pressure at the time of lumbar puncture and equipment used, method of calibration, routine for equipment for this should be available in most http://adc.bmj.com/ checking time and temperature drift, sterilisation, treatment rooms and accident departments. and in a standard zero reference value. Basic Measurement can be performed after brief instruc- equipment, which can be used in most circumstances tion on how to calibrate and sterilise the equipment; and is inexpensive compared with modern hospital most children find it no more uncomfortable than equipment, consists of a small Luer-locking solid the lumbar puncture procedure has always been; state transducer (for example, Gaeltec or Statham), and it can be carried out in any paediatric age group. a pre-amplifier, and a physiological pen recorder. More sophisticated display, storage, and data pro- (2) When the ventricles are enlarged. The most on September 25, 2021 by guest. Protected copyright. cessing with microprocessors or computers may, accurate intracranial pressure recordings are however, be desired. There are three principal obtained from the ventricles, either directly from opportunities for measuring intracranial pressure. ventricular cannulation (burr or twist drill hole) or via a ventriculostomy reservoir connected to an (1) At the time of lumbar puncture. Traditional external transducer. This is the method of choice in practice has been to measure cerebrospinal fluid the older child where the ventricles are easily pressure at lumbar puncture by open ended man- located. As little cerebrospinal fluid as possible ometry but this method is fraught with inaccuracies should be spilt and all joints must be watertight. It in routine practice. The mere fact that cerebrospinal allows easy recalibration, a means of controlling fluid is displaced from a closed system to fill a pressure (by drainage against a pressure of 10 column is fundamentally error producing; 'eyeball- mmHg) and has the additional advantage of en- ing' a fluctuating meniscus and the need for several abling pressure volume responses (PVI in mmHg/ pairs of hands have negated much of its usefulness. ml) to be carried out, thus identifying patients at risk Measurement can now be accomplished simply of pressure decompensation.' without displacement of cerebrospinal fluid with the For the older child with active hydrocephalus, patient in the lateral recumbent postion for lumbar management is dramatically altered by placing a 486 Arch Dis Child: first published as 10.1136/adc.59.5.486 on 1 May 1984. Downloaded from Intracranial pressure monitoring 487 separately sited reservoir (usually in the right frontal cranial bones after a threader has been used on the horn) at the same time as definitive cerebrospinal inner aspect of the drill hole. Again this equipment fluid shunt insertion, thus providing both access and is inexpensive and the apparatus may be calibrated drainage. When there is subsequent block or infec- externally. tion of the shunt simple tapping of the reservoir and The use of screws in the epidural space, which direct intracranial pressure recording will often avoids opening the dura and theoretically lessens the delineate the problem. Equivocal pressure results risk of seizures, haematoma, or infection has not may necessitate a provocation record through sev- proved reliable because of signal damping. Subdural eral rapid eye movement sleep phases when intra- placement also records disparate pressures (com- cranial pressure increases as a result of enhanced pared with ventricular pressure) at values greater cerebral blood flow. than 20 mmHg. Intracranial catheter tip pressure Ventricular pressure monitoring is also helpful in transducers for epidural use and implanted epidural children with intermittently active hydrocephalus transducers probably only approximate cerebro- and long standing pressure symptoms and those with spinal fluid pressure and are inferior to the screw in space occupation from tumour, clot, cyst, or ab- my experience. scess. The use of this method in tuberculous menin- There are additional problems in infancy and in gitis, ventriculitis, and other meningitides has also the newborn-swollen brain syndromes consequent allowed better control of intracranial pressure while on anoxic ischaemic injury, central nervous system the infection is being treated. infections etc. Neonatal methods which have been A telemetric pressure sensor for hydrocephalus used include measurements from most of the surface and ventricular shunt systems2 combines a telemet- spaces such as the subarachnoid or subdural5 where ric device attached to either the proximal limb of a a wide bore medicut is introduced via the anterior cerebrospinal fluid shunt or a reservoir. This allows fontanelle using a conventional subdural puncture in vivo confirmation of zero point and pressure procedure and leaving a teflon catheter in situ. calibrations by means of pressure balanced tele- (These are attractive because they are easy to metry. This may prove of value in the outpatient insert). It is important, however, to ensure that assessment of hydrocephalic states in the future and movement of the catheter does not cause air liquid is currently under evaluation in Edinburgh. interfaces thus falsifying the recorded intracranial In neonates with ventriculomegaly short opportu- pressure. These methods require further validation nistic records may be obtained at the time of by comparison with ventricular pressures. A re- percutaneous ventricular puncture but prolonged cently designed, plastic miniaturised screw is cur- http://adc.bmj.com/ recordings require that a finer, non-compliant cath- rently on trial for this group of children. Its smaller eter be left in situ. If the ventricles are not easily size and light weight make it more desirable for the located this way no more than two attempts should thin cranial bones of infancy. be allowed before alternative techniques are sought. Many forms of fontonometry have been tried over Insertion of a miniaturised ventriculostomy reservoir the past 10 years such as the Ladd device, stetho- of the type recently designed (Steers J; personal scope 'pick ups', tambours, modified Schiotz tono- communication) may be a useful alternative to meter, aplanation transducers, pressure activated repeated puncture or hardware of adult dimensions. fibreoptic sensors, oscillographic technique, saggital on September 25, 2021 by guest. Protected copyright. sinus pressure or bloodflow, and impedence, and (3) At the brain surface. In older children with while varying degrees of success have been achieved conditions of brain swelling in coma and decerebrate fundamental problems still exist with coplanimetry, states such as Reye's syndrome, anoxic-ischaemic the external pressure applied, tension in the fon- encephalopathy, and head injury a fluid filled metal tanelle etc, making these methods suitable for screw is mounted in a twist drill hole and placed in research but of limited value in routine clinical the subarachnoid space.3 This avoids brain punc- practice. ture, is secure on the skull, and is independent of shifts or small ventricular size. Several types of Recordings screw have been used such as the single lumen screw and the Leeds screw but my preference is for the The zero reference value is usually taken as the Newell modification of the Leeds screw which is foramen of Munro (mid-cranium) with the patient stainless steel, simple in design, without movable supine. The hydraulic system of blood brain and parts, easily autoclaved, and has a luer connection cerebrospinal fluid is responsible for the normal for attachment to the transducer. It is imperative intracranial pressure. For older children and adults that a good bolt-space connection is maintained