Water on the Brain

Being in my early twenties it seems like everyone around me, either slightly older, younger, or my age, is deciding to have a baby. I'm definitely not ready for that kind of responsibility right now, but somewhere along the line I would love to see a little miniature version of myself running around. With that said, I think learning bits of information pertaining to babies would be beneficial for everyone reading this. Even if you don't plan on having any children, I still think it's something worth learning about. 

So what does a baby have to do with water on the brain, you might ask?  

Water on the brain, or more commonly known as hydrocephalus, is a condition that occurs when cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) becomes obstructed and accumulates within the ventricles, or subarachnoid space. This in turn increases the pressure on the brain and causes the infants skull bones to separate, leading to what appears as an overgrown head. The outcome of this condition is typically associated with mental retardation and may affect many other aspects of the body. 

Now that you know how having a baby and water on the brain correlate to each other and you know what hydrocephalus is, you might also be asking yourself how and why does CSF accumulate in an infant's head? 

The video below shows a family and the struggles they faced, when they found out their newborn, Emma, was diagnosed with hydrocephalus. It also has the answer to that question (at approximately 4:20) but before you skip ahead, I recommend watching the entire video.

Aside from telling the story of Emma, the doctor in the video also mentions the treatment and history, which was extremely interesting to learn. I had heard of hydrocephalus a couple of times in some other classes, but I never knew how and if it was even possible to treat such a condition. According to Dr.Moss, a tube must be connected to both the head and abdomen in order to drain the fluid, and that prior to this treatment, babies who were diagnosed with this condition in the early 1900's were going to pass away with no chances of survival, which is really sad and unfortunate. Thankfully though, research and technology now enables others, like Emma, to live almost nearly normal lifestyles.