Anatomic Variations of the Floor of the Third Ventricle: An Endoscopic Study.
OBJECTIVE
Anatomical variations of the floor of the third ventricle are common in hydrocephalic patients and can significantly affect outcomes of endoscopic third ventriculostomy (ETV). We sought to categorize variations in third ventricle anatomy and to discuss the implications of these variations for ETV.


METHODS
Intraoperative videos and pictures of 50 patients who underwent ETV between April 2001 and August 2010 were reviewed. Twenty-seven patients with clearly demonstrable third ventricular floors that satisfied our criteria were selected for the study.


RESULTS
Images of variations were organized into the following categories: 1) thinned floor, 2) thickened floor, 3) partially effaced floor, 4) ballooning/herniating floor, 5) small prepontine interval, 6) narrowed third ventricle, and 7) other significant anomalies.


CONCLUSIONS
The third ventricle is a common site for anatomical variations in hydrocephalic patients. A good knowledge of these variations is essential before performing ETV, because they have the potential to increase operative risk.
['Sughrue|Michael E|ME|', 'Chiou|Judy|J|', 'Burks|Joshua D|JD|', 'Bonney|Phillip A|PA|', 'Teo|Charles|C|']
D059925:Anatomic Landmarks D006801:Humans D006849:Hydrocephalus D010781:Photography D015203:Reproducibility of Results D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity D020542:Third Ventricle D014741:Video Recording
Floor Third ventricle Endoscopic Anatomy Endoscopy Intraventricular Neuroendoscopy