• K Fujiwara, S Mikawa, and T Ebina.
• Department of Neurosurgery, Tohoku University, School of Medicine, 1-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8574, Japan.
• No Shinkei Geka. 2001 Jan 1;29(1):23-30.

AbstractWe studied the feasibility of intrathecal nicardipine administration using a portable infusion pump system in five cases (two males and three females) of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). All of the five cases manifested severe SAH of Hunt & Kosnic grade 3 or 4, and Fisher CT group 3. Aneurysmal sites of five cases were as follows: three internal carotid-posterior communicating artery (IC-PC) aneurysms and two anterior communicating artery (Acom) aneurysms. The container of the infusion pump system was filled with 105 ml of nicardipine-saline solution (2:1), and this system was connected to the cisternal tube. The solution was continuously injected at a daily dose of 12 ml (8 mg of nicardipine). This therapy was continued for 14 days, and new nicardipine solution was supplied only once at 8 days after the operation during this therapy. No postural restraint of patients was necessary, even during physical movement for rehabilitation. Postoperative angiography was performed in three of five cases at one week after the operation. No angiographic vasospasm was observed in any of the three cases. Symptomatic vasospasm was observed in one case of right IC-PC aneurysm as a transient total aphasia and right hemiplegia, which recovered within several hours due to induced hypervolemia and hypertension therapy. Mild meningitis at 14 days after the operation complicated this treatment in one case, but it improved in a few days after the cisternal tube was removed. It was speculated that meningitis was caused by cerebrospinal fluid leakage from the scalp exit site of the cisternal tube. All of the five cases had obtained good recovery at three months after the operation. These results show that, although this method involves a risk of infection, it has the advantage of easiness and convenience over conventional methods. Though further improvement of this method is required, this preliminary stage is potentially useful for delivering not only nicardipine, but also for other drugs which may be used in intrathecal administration therapy.

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