Diverse clinical applications of percutaneous lumboperitoneal shunts.

A population of 28 patients underwent the percutaneous placement of a shunt in the lumbar region with a single tube, the other end of which was placed in the peritoneal cavity by laparotomy. The clinical indications for the procedure were: communicating hydrocephalus (16 patients), pseudotumor cerebri (3 patients), cranial cerebrospinal fluid fistula (4 patients), and a bulging postcraniotomy site (2 patients). An additional 3 patients were treated by lumbar subcutaneous-peritoneal shunt for a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)-subcutaneous fistula after the removal of a leptomyelolipoma. The mean time of follow-up was 18.8 +/- 7.8 months. All patients with pseudotumor cerebri and subcutaneous lumbar CSF fistula and all but 1 of the patients with a cranial CSF fistula improved without further therapy. Twelve of the 16 patients with communicating hydrocephalus improved and did not require other shunt procedures. There was one shunt infection, one wound dehiscence that led to shunt removal, and one shunt migration into the spinal canal. Shunt obstruction that led to revision of the shunt occurred on three occasions in 2 patients. The shunt functioned in only 1 of 4 infants under 4 months of age.