Untreated fluid in brain could result in brain damage, death – Consultant

A Consultant Neurosurgeon, Dr. Omotayo Ojo, on Monday in Lagos said that untreated hydrocephalus could lead to brain damage and loss of mental and physical abilities.
Hydrocephalus is a condition in which fluid accumulates in the brain.
It is usually in young children, enlarging the head and sometimes causing brain damage.
Ojo, who is also a Consultant at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Idi-Araba, told the News Agency of Nigeria that hydrocephalus could lead to death.
He said that in Nigeria, some parents misconstru hydrocephalus as a “spiritual problem” and fail to seek the required medical treatment in time.
He said: “Hydrocephalus, which is also known as water on the brain, if not treated early, can permanently damage the brain, causing problems with physical and mental development.
“Parents are advised to see hydrocephalus as an emergency case.
“Treatment must be administered as soon as it is noticed.
“Hydrocephalus means the cavity gets bigger while the brain gets thinner.
“When that brain diameter or thickness is less than one centimetre, that child can never be normal.
“However, with early diagnosis and timely treatment, most children recover successfully and they can go on to live normal.
“Unfortunately, though many parents are able to detect it early, because of ignorance, they fail to see hydrocephalus as a clinical condition.
“By the time these parents are bringing the child to the hospital, irreversible damage may have been done.”
The consultant said that hydrocephalus was a commonly recorded paediatric case.
Ojo said: “Hydrocephalus can be congenital or acquired.
“It is the commonest paediatric presentation to neurosurgical unit.”
According to him, more than half of the children taken to neurosurgery are due hydrocephalus condition.
Ojo added that signs of hydrocephalus included enlarged head, vomiting and sleepiness.
He said: “The congenital one is when a child is born with it.
“It is caused by infection that gets into brain and blocks the pathway and the head starts getting bigger.
“The acquired one is caused by infections like meningitis, tuberculosis or abscesses.
“In children, the commonest signs of hydrocephalus are refusal of fluid, vomiting, seizures, stunted growth and significant swelling of the head.”