Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension: Shunt Failure and the Role of Obesity.

BACKGROUND

Idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) is a chronic condition characterized by raised intracranial pressure in the absence of a known etiology. IIH typically presents in overweight women of childbearing age. Surgical intervention for IIH involves diversion of cerebrospinal fluid, often by the placement of a shunt. Experience suggests higher shunt failure rates in patients with IIH than shunts placed for other etiologies. Here we sought to both establish and compare failure rates for IIH and non-IIH shunts and to examine association with body mass index (BMI).

METHODS

This study was a single-center retrospective consecutive cohort over a 13-year period. There were 1264 non-IIH patients and 116 patients with IIH included in the study. This was a retrospective analysis of time to shunt failure using Kaplan-Meier methods for IIH and non-IIH shunts. Secondary analysis of BMI, shunt type, and sex on IIH shunt failure was also conducted.

RESULTS

The median time to failure of the initial IIH shunt was 22.9 months (interquartile range [IQR], 4-55) compared with 57 months (IQR, 12-87) in non-IIH shunts (P < 0.001; 95% confidence interval, 58.6-233.6). In the IIH group, the median shunt survival for BMI above the healthy range (18.5-25 kg/m2) was 18 months relative to 44 months for those with a healthy BMI.

CONCLUSIONS

Our study suggests that in IIH, relative to hydrocephalus of other causes, shunts have higher failure rates and often require more frequent revisions. Higher shunt failure rates in patients with IIH may be associated with an unhealthy BMI.