Hydrocephalus :(

Nevets was born with an encephalocele which caused his Chiari Type III and hydrocephalus. It also is the main source of his spinal bifida, and cerebral palsy. This is a picture of Stevey with his encephalocele in tact. 

The term hydrocephalus is derived from the Greek words "hydro" meaning water and "cephalus" meaning head. As the name implies, it is a condition in which the primary characteristic is excessive accumulation of fluid in the brain. Although hydrocephalus was once known as "water on the brain," the "water" is actually cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)--a clear fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord. The excessive accumulation of CSF results in an abnormal widening of spaces in the brain called ventricles. This widening creates potentially harmful pressure on the tissues of the brain.

Hydrocephalus treatment is surgical, generally utilizing various types of cerebral shunts. It involves the placement of a ventricular catheter (a tube made of silastic), into the cerebral ventricles to bypass the flow obstruction/malfunctioning arachnoidal granulations and drain the excess fluid into other body cavities, from where it can be resorbed. Most shunts drain the fluid into theperitoneal cavity (ventriculo-peritoneal shunt), but alternative sites include the right atrium (ventriculo-atrial shunt), pleural cavity (ventriculo-pleural shunt), and gallbladder. A shunt system can also be placed in the lumbar space of the spine and have the CSF redirected to the peritoneal cavity (Lumbar-peritoneal shunt). Nevets is the proud owner of a VP Shunt that drains into his abdominal cavity :) He has only had to have two placed in all his almost 5 years. When he was roughly 4 months old, his first shunt got infected. Dr. Marion Walker replaced the shunt and we have had NO problems since then. Whew :)