This very recent publication by Peter Kranz, MD and his colleagues at Duke University in Durham, NC provides new insight into the presence or absence of dural enhancement on brain MRI in patients with spontaneous intracranial hypotension (SIH) secondary to...
Updates from the Spinal CSF Leak Foundation
New Partnership
We launched our online Support Community for those suffering with Spinal CSF Leaks in partnership with Inspire several months ago. Inspire is a trusted company that builds and manages many secure online support communities. We are pleased to announce that the CSF Leak...
Classification of Spontaneous Spinal CSF Leaks
This is a VERY important paper by Schievink and hs colleagues outlining a classification of various types of spontaneous spinal CSF leaks. This does not apply to iatrogenic or traumatic leaks. The classification was based on a large sample size of well over 500...
On Diamox? – Beware of the Champagne Blues
Rebound intracranial hypertension (high intracranial pressure) has been described after epidural patching and surgical procedures for intracranial hypotension (low intracranial pressure) resulting from spinal CSF (cerebrospinal fluid) leak. One of the treatments for...
Expanding Epidural Patching Techniques for Spinal CSF Leak
CT-fluoroscopy-Guided Ventral CSF Leak Patching Shared with permission from Timothy Amhrein, MD and Duke University Medical Center Several centers in the USA and elsewhere that see larger numbers of patients with spinal CSF (cerebrospinal fluid) leaks are continually...
Diagnostic challenges in spontaneous intracranial hypotension
Spontaneous intracranial hypotension from spinal CSF leak is an important cause of headache, often quite disabling, that can be cured with treatment. The diagnosis, however, is not always as straightforward as one might imagine. Apart from low familiarity of an...
Case Report: Tremor and Ataxia from Spontaneous Intracranial Hypotension
This 2016 paper from the open-access journal Tremor and Other Hyperkinetic Movements is a case report about a 68-year-old man who developed tremor and ataxia and did not have a positional headache. It was not until his MRI was done that the underlying cause of...
Deconditioning in spinal CSF leak patients
Many patients with intracranial hypotension from spinal cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leaks endure a limited ability to be functional while upright. Often much or most of the day is spent recumbent because that is often the only effective way to reduce the positional...
Abnormal Dura in Spontaneous Intracranial Hypotension
Heritable disorders of connective tissue (HDCT) have been identified more frequently in people with spinal CSF leak than in the general population.
Focus on Causes of Intracranial Hypotension
There are several situations in which intracranial hypotension (low CSF volume/pressure in the head) can develop. This is almost always secondary to a CSF leak at the level of the spine. There are 3 main categories. Causes of Intracranial Hypotension: 1. Iatrogenic –...
Do I Need an Echo?
Many cases of spontaneous intracranial hypotension (SIH) (intracranial hypotension = low pressure inside head) due to spinal CSF (cerebrospinal fluid) leak appear to be related to an underlying weakness of the dura, the connective tissue that holds CSF in around the...
National Organization for Rare Disorders
We have recently joined NORD, the National Organization for Rare Disorders. NORD, a 501(c)(3) organization, is a patient advocacy organization dedicated to individuals with rare diseases and the organizations that serve them. NORD, along with its more than 230 patient...