RESEARCH

Fabricating Prosthetic Arachnoid Granulations Using 3D Printing Technology

The proposed device has been fabricated using assembly of several parts manufactured by 3D printing (stereolithography). The additive manufacturing allows layer-by-layer deposition of soft polymer with high precision. The performance of bead-based arachnoid granulations has been preliminarily tested, including penetration into biological tissues and benchtop flow tests.

In Vitro Modeling of Obstructive Failure of Hydrocephalus Shunts

Alone or in combination with previously-published culture models of shunt obstruction, this model serves as a relevant test bed to analyze mechanisms of shunt failure and to test catheter modifications that will prevent cell attachment and growth.

Elucidating Cellular Mechanisms Underlying Ventricular Catheter Obstruction

Shunt obstruction by cells and/or tissue is the most common cause of shunt failure. Ventricular catheter obstruction alone accounts for more than 50% of shunt failures in pediatric patients. The authors sought to systematically collect explanted ventricular catheters from the Seattle Children's Hospital with a focus on elucidating the cellular mechanisms underlying obstruction.

Using In Vitro Cell Culture Models with Arduino Based Flow and Pressure Modulation to study the effect of circadian rhythms on ventricular shunt obstruction

In this study, we demonstrate a scalable system that regulates flowrate, pressure, and pulsation amplitude. We also show that with new microcontroller technology, up to 15chambers running in parallel is theoretically possible. Our system, the Flow Limiting Operator (FLO),achieves these goals by multiplexing a series of valves and pumps to control pressure and volumetricflow rate instead of relying on head gas pressure.