Objective: Pediatric patients are at risk of persistent hydrocephalus after posterior fossa tumor resection. The relationship between surgery-related factors and postoperative symptomatic hydrocephalus has not been elucidated. The objective of this study was to analyze features influencing postoperative hydrocephalus in Chinese children.
Methods: The authors retrospectively evaluated 197 patients younger than 15 years of age who underwent posterior fossa tumor resection at their institution from January 2015 to June 2021. The outcome was whether children underwent CSF diversion within 6 months of resection. Preoperative characteristics, surgery-related factors, and postoperative features were included to identify independent prognosticators. A new logistic model containing independent prognosticators was developed and compared with the modified Canadian Preoperative Prediction Rule for Hydrocephalus (mCPPRH).
Results: In this study, 30 patients (15.2%) underwent CSF diversion within 6 months after tumor resection. Tumor location and consistency, intracranial or spinal tumor metastasis determined by perioperative cerebral and spinal MRI, intraoperative blood loss, ventricular blood as determined on postoperative CT, and pathology were statistically significant variables in the univariate analysis. The only two independent predictors of postoperative symptomatic hydrocephalus were tumor metastasis (OR 3.463, 95% CI 1.137-10.549; p = 0.029) and postoperative ventricular blood (OR 4.212, 95% CI 1.595-11.122; p = 0.004). The final logistic model comprising tumor metastasis and postoperative ventricular blood was found to have better discrimination than the mCPPRH.
Conclusions: Tumor characteristics and surgery-related features were associated with postoperative symptomatic hydrocephalus. Tumor metastasis and postoperative ventricular blood were found to be important prognosticators of persistent hydrocephalus.
Keywords: pediatric patients; posterior fossa tumor; shunt placement; symptomatic hydrocephalus.