Colonic complications of ventriculoperitoneal shunts

Late perforation of the large bowel by the abdominal catheter of a ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt is extremely rare. Four of five reported patients subsequently died. We report here three patients who presented with this complication and were treated successfully. Bowel perforation by a VP shunt catheter should be considered when a shunt infection is secondary to gram-negative enteric organisms. It can occur without evidence of peritonitis, and the abdominal catheter can be removed percutaneously, thus avoiding a laparotomy.