Recommending Improvements to Ventriculoperitoneal Shunts Using Biomedical and Mechanical Techniques

Trainor, Daniel; Jones, Morgan; Marsh, Daniel; VanDeMark, Vanessa; Daw, Winona; Brownell, Jennifer; O'leary, Katherine

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Recommending Improvements to Ventriculoperitoneal Shunts Using Biomedical and Mechanical Techniques

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Ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunts are important to regulate the flow of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in patients with hydrocephalus. Despite the recent advancements in shunts throughout the past few decades, there are still gaps and needs that have not been met. The objective of this study was to determine a method to measure pressure noninvasively within the shunt and adjacent catheters, while also reducing the adhesion of proteins that lead to obstruction. The preliminary results show the pressure of CSF can be measured utilizing a strain gauge, housed in silicone on both a macro and micro scale. The results obtained from contact angle analysis and staining the surface of each material provided valuable insight to which material selection would improve the longevity and efficiency of the shunt device by reducing protein adhesion. Utilizing Ansys Fluent and Ansys Mechanical, the team predicted how obstruction would relate to changes in pressure throughout the device and provided recommendations on where a strain gauge could be placed in the device.

This report represents the work of one or more WPI undergraduate students submitted to the faculty as evidence of completion of a degree requirement. WPI routinely publishes these reports on its website without editorial or peer review.

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