Early shunt complications in 46 children with hydrocephalus.

OBJECTIVE To determine the causes of early shunt complications in 46 children with hydrocephalus. METHOD A retrospective study was conducted on 46 children submitted to ventriculoperitoneal shunt surgery between February 2005 and February 2007. RESULTS Thirteen (28%) patients presented complications, which were due to infection in 9 (69%) and to malfunction of the shunt system in 4 (31%).The mean number of surgical procedures performed on patients who presented complications was 2.8 per patient, with a total of 46 surgeries in this group. All patients with infectious complications were identified during their hospital stay. CONCLUSIONS Infection was the most common complication. The infection rate was proportional to the length of hospital stay. All patients with hydrocephalus due to tumors or myelomeningocele presented complications. A higher incidence of infections was observed in children older than 2 years.