History of hydrocephalus and its surgical treatment

Abstract

Hydrocephalus, as known as a disease process, is an ancient one. The disorder has described in cave paintings, in early manuscripts in antiquity, and in many clinical observations over the last 25 centuries. The treatment of hydrocephalus as a surgical disorder is very recent, only dating to the 1950s. Prior to this period, treatment surgically lead to the death of the patient in almost one hundred percent of the time. Our medical colleagues did not do much better. In this chapter, we review the medical and surgical treatment of hydrocephalus dating to antiquity using contemporary reference sources. The development of the anatomy of the ventricular system, often very confusing to early anatomists, is reviewed if only to show the many errors generated by physicians in its understanding. The history of hydrocephalus is a fascinating one, and in order to better understand the concepts, illustrations from contemporary sources and the individuals involved have been included.