Otogenic tension pneumocephalus complicated by eustachian tube insufflation in a patient with a ventriculoperitoneal shunt. Case report.

Spontaneous tension pneumocephalus (TPC) related to shunt surgery has sometimes been reported with reference to the Valsalva maneuver and osseous defects of the tegmen tympani. Here, the authors report on a case of TPC complicated by eustachian tube (ET) insufflation and a ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt. This 78-year-old man had undergone VP shunt insertion 3 weeks before readmission to the hospital with a diagnosis of TPC, a left temporal porencephalic cyst, and air accumulation and late leakage of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) into the left tympanic cavity. The TPC was controlled successfully by ligation of the shunt tube. The authors discuss the pathophysiology of this complicated TPC case, which illustrates the risk of ET insufflation in patients undergoing CSF shunt surgery.