TITLE:
Visual acuity evaluation in children with hydrocephalus: An electrophysiological study with sweep visual evoked potential
AUTHORS:
Silvana Alves Pereira, Marcelo Fernandes Costa
KEYWORDS:
Hydrocephalus; Ventricular Shunt; Visual Acuity; Sweep Visual Evoked Potential; Visual Development
JOURNAL NAME:
World Journal of Neuroscience,
Vol.2 No.1,
February
29,
2012
ABSTRACT: The objective was to measure the visual acuity (VA) of children with the diagnosis of hydrocephalus with or without peritoneal-ventricular shunt (PVS). A total of 55 children were included in the study (34 Female), with an age range of 0 to 291 weeks. The VA was measured by the sweep visual evoked potential technique. Of those with a PVS, in 31 the ventricular valve was inserted before 15 days after the diagnosis whereas in 14 the ventricular valve was inserted after 15 days. The sweep VEP was performed in all children, 95 exams (94%) were abnormal and only 6 were normal. There was a statistical difference in the VA between children with a PVS inserted before 15 days of the diagnosis and children with a PVS after 15 days (p = 0.038) or those without a shunt (p = 0.031). Children with no complications of the PVS had a better VA as compared to those with shunt complications (p