Complications of ventriculoperitoneal shunts in children in Dar es Salaam

Semali, Innocent A.

Complications of ventriculoperitoneal shunts in children in Dar es Salaam

dc.contributor.author	Semali, Innocent A.
dc.date.accessioned	2020-07-20T10:21:00Z
dc.date.available	2020-07-20T10:21:00Z
dc.date.issued	2005
dc.description.abstract	Background: From the few reports available, VP shunt surgery in sub- Saharan Africa is associated with significant complications. This study was aimed at establishing the pattern, causes and frequency of complications of VPS in Tanzania. Methods: Sixty five of the 102 children with hydrocephalus treated with ventriculoperitoneal shunts between January 1996 and January 1999 were studied prospectively. The first follow-up was at 2 weeks postoperative when the wounds were evaluated and occipitofrontal circumference measured. Further follow-ups were at 4 weeks and at three months. Collaborating staff of the Comprehensive Community Based Rehabilitation in Tanzania (CCBRT) thereafter regularly followed up the children at home. Results: The male to female ratio was 1.8 to 1. Forty-seven of the children (72%) were less than 12 months old but no patient was under 1 month of age at operation. The mean occipitofrontal circumference was 50.7cm. Shunt blockage was the commonest complication (32.3%) followed by infection (24.6%). The combined complication rate of shunt infection and wound infection was 46.1%. Shunt-related mortality was 13 (20.0%). There was no statistically significant correlation between the occipitofrontal circumference and type of complication or mortality. The mean age among the patients showing disconnection was 21.3 months compared to a mean age of 8.1 months for those not having this complication (P-value=0.04) Conclusion: The complication rates were higher than those in Western series but compared well with findings from sub Saharan Africa other studies.	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Kinasha, A.D.A., Kahamba, J.F. and Semali, I.T., 2005. Complications of ventriculoperitoneal shunts in children in Dar es Salaam. East and Central African Journal of Surgery, 10(2), pp.55-59.	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	https://www.ajol.info/index.php/ecajs/article/view/137290
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/123456789/542
dc.language.iso	en	en_US
dc.publisher	East and Central African Journal of Surgery	en_US
dc.subject	Ventriculoperitoneal	en_US
dc.subject	Children	en_US
dc.subject	VP shunt surgery	en_US
dc.title	Complications of ventriculoperitoneal shunts in children in Dar es Salaam	en_US
dc.type	Article	en_US