Units

PubMed

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Citation

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Journal

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Issn Print

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Brief description/objective

Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) is characterized by the classic triad of symptoms including gait disturbance, urinary incontinence, and dementia. Gait impairment represents the cardinal symptom. NPH is associated with a radiological verifiable ventriculomegaly in the absence of elevated cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pressure. Because many patients do not present with classical clinical and radiological findings, its diagnosis and management represents a challenge for the general practitioner, neurologist and neurosurgeon. Various supplemental preoperative tests, including lumbar CSF tap test or CSF outflow resistance determination, can improve the accuracy of predicting a response to surgical intervention. CSF shunt results in significant symptoms in the majority of appropriately evaluated patients. The following article discusses clinical aspects, diagnosis and current therapeutic options.