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Can we consider ventriculo-gallbladder shunt a first-line treatment in selected patients? Case report of a successful management

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Abstract

Introduction

Ventriculo-gallbladder shunt (VGS) has been recognized as a last-resort alternative to treat hydrocephalus when the peritoneum and/or other distal sites can no longer receive shunts. In some specific conditions, it may be conceded as a first-line treatment.

Case presentation

We report the case of a 6-month-old girl with progressive post-hemorrhagic hydrocephalus who presented a concomitant chronic abdominal symptom. Specific investigations ruled out acute infection and led to the diagnosis of chronic appendicitis. Both problems were managed in a one-stage salvage procedure consisting of laparotomy sanctioning to treat the abdominal pathology and seize the opportunity to perform a VGS as a first option since the abdomen is prone to ventriculoperitoneal shunt (VPS) failure.

Conclusion

Only few cases have reported the use of VGS as the first option to handle uncommon complex cases due to abdominal or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) conditions. We wish to draw attention to VGS as an effective procedure not only in children with multiple shunt failures but also as first-line management in some selected cases.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Neurosurgery, Fattouma Bourguiba University Hospital, Avenue Farhat Hached, 5000, Monastir, Tunisia

    Mohamed Maher Hadhri, Zohra Souei, Mohamed Boukhit, Atef Ben Nsir & Mehdi Darmoul

  2. Department of Pediatric Surgery, Fattouma Bourguiba University Hospital, Monastir, Tunisia

    Sana Mosbahi

  3. Research Unity Interventional Radiology LR18SP08, University of Monastir, Monastir, Tunisia

    Mohamed Maher Hadhri & Atef Ben Nsir

Authors
  1. Mohamed Maher Hadhri
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  2. Zohra Souei
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  3. Mohamed Boukhit
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  4. Sana Mosbahi
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  5. Atef Ben Nsir
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  6. Mehdi Darmoul
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Contributions

MH: conceptualization. ZS: writing—original draft and editing. MB: review and editing. SM: review of literature. AB: methodology. MD: supervision. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Mohamed Maher Hadhri.

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Hadhri, M.M., Souei, Z., Boukhit, M. et al. Can we consider ventriculo-gallbladder shunt a first-line treatment in selected patients? Case report of a successful management. Childs Nerv Syst 39, 1963–1968 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00381-023-05923-2

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