Ommaya reservoir
The Ommaya reservoir is an invention by Dr Ayub K. Ommaya, a famous neurosurgeon. During surgery a catheter - a thin tube - is placed into one of the ventricles of the brain. The catheter is attached to a reservoir right under the scalp.[1]
The Ommaya reservoir can be used for a few different things:[1][2]
- To deliver chemotherapy directly to where a brain tumor is
- To take samples of cerebrospinal fluid, the fluid that cushions and protects the brain and spinal cord. This can cut down on the number of painful spinal taps (lumbar punctures) the patient needs to have.
- To give morphine directly into the brains of patients who are dying of cancer and are in terrible pain
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 "About Your Ommaya Reservoir Placement Surgery for Pediatric Patients". Patient & Caregiver Education Center. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Retrieved January 27, 2016.
- ↑ Leonidas C. Goudas et al.: Acute Decreases in Cerebrospinal Fluid Glutathione Levels after Intracerebroventricular Morphine for Cancer Pain, International Anesthesia Research Society 1999
