Prophylactic Intraventricular Piping Method Prevents Entrapped Temporal Horn After Removal of Ventricle Trigone Meningioma: Technical Note.

BACKGROUND

An entrapped temporal horn (ETH) is one of the critical complications after tumor removal in the lateral ventricle trigone that sometimes becomes life threatening.

OBJECTIVE

We sought to develop a novel intraoperative method of prophylactic intraventricular piping (PIP) just after tumor removal to prevent ETH.

METHODS

Three patients with meningiomas in the lateral ventricle trigone were treated by a novel intraoperative method of PIP just after tumor removal to prevent ETH. Silicone catheters normally used as ventricular drainage catheters were cut to 5- to 6-cm length and inserted into the tumor cavity to ensure communication between the temporal horn and the atrium or the body of the lateral ventricle through the piping straddling the trigone.

RESULTS

None of our patients developed ETH during the follow-up period without complications caused by the tube placement.

CONCLUSIONS

PIP might be beneficial to prevent ETH because constant osmotic pressure and constant cerebrospinal fluid pulse wave transmission are maintained between each compartment of the lateral ventricle.