Sonographically detected subarachnoid hemorrhage: an independent predictor of neonatal posthemorrhagic hydrocephalus?

Blood from an intraventricular hemorrhage (IVH) can collect in the basilar cisterns and cause ventriculomegaly and eventual need for ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt. We looked for sonographic evidence of subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) in three basal cisterns and in the Sylvian fissure of 82 infants with IVH, 30 of whom had ventriculomegaly. We found that ultrasonographically diagnosed SAH and measurement of ventricular blood volume predict ventriculomegaly and need for VP shunt.