Congenital hydrocephalus
Babies who are born with congenital hydrocephalus often have distinctive physical characteristics.
Physical signs that may indicate that your baby has congenital hydrocephalus include:
- your baby’s head may appear unusually large,
- your baby’s scalp may be thin and shiny with easily visible veins,
- there may be a bulge (a tense fontanelle) on the top of your baby’s head,
- the pupils of the eyes often ‘droop’ to the bottom of the eyelids (this is known as ‘the setting-sun’ sign because the eyes resemble the sun setting below the horizon), and
- the muscles in your baby’s lower limbs may appear stiff, and be prone to muscle spasms (contractions).
As well as these physical signs, congenital hydrocephalus can also cause symptoms of:
- poor feeding,
- irritability,
- drowsiness, and
- vomiting.
There may also be a delay in some stages of the baby's development, such as cradling or sitting up.
Acquired hydrocephalus
Symptoms of acquired hydrocephalus include:
- headache,
- nausea and vomiting,
- lack of appetite,
- increased irritability,
- lethargy or drowsiness,
- changes in personality,
- disorientation,
- visual problems, such as double or blurred vision,
- fits and seizures,
- difficulty walking, which is more common in adults than children, and
- incontinence (usually urinary incontinence rather than bowel incontinence).
Normal pressure hydrocephalus
Unlike the other two types of hydrocephalus, the symptoms of normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) usually develop slowly, over the course of many months or years.
Usually, the first noticeable symptom of NPH is a change in how you walk (your gait). You may find it increasingly difficult to take the first step when you want to start walking (some people have described it as feeling as though they are frozen to the spot). You may shuffle rather than taking proper steps.
The change in the way you walk is often followed by bouts of urinary incontinence, and a progressive slowing of the normal thinking process. This can take the form of:
- being slow to respond to questions,
- slow reactions to situations, and
- being slow to process information.
