Open AccessAspergillus growth within ventriculoperitoneal shunt tube
Author(s) -
Vikas Kumar,
Poonam Loomba,
Daljit Singh,
Ravindra Kumar Saran
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
journal of pediatric neurosciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.247
H-Index - 18
eISSN - 1998-3948
pISSN - 1817-1745
DOI - 10.4103/jpn.jpn_149_16
Subject(s) - shunt (medical) , medicine , hydrocephalus , surgery , cerebrospinal fluid , lumen (anatomy) , silicone , pathology , chemistry , organic chemistry
Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) shunt failure is commonly associated with infection or mechanical obstruction of the shunt system. A 4-year-old male child who had undergone multiple shunt revisions at another hospital for congenital hydrocephalus and later for shunt obstruction, presented with exposed shunt at the supraclavicular region. Shunt revision was performed. The CSF culture showed no growth; however, the histopathological examination of shunt tube showed Aspergillus growth inside the lumen of silicone tube well away from the tip of ventriculoperitoneal shunt. The skin biopsy from the exposed site revealed foreign body giant cell granulomatous reaction. The patient was discharged on postoperative day 6 without any complications. At 3 months follow-up, the patient is doing well. A growth of Aspergillus within the shunt tube prompted us to think of how the hardware can get infected and may remain a source of constant infection.