Spinal CSF Leak

What is CSF Leak?

`A cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leak is a medical condition categorized by a tear or opening in the membranes that surround the brain or spinal cord, which allows the clear fluid that surrounds these body parts to escape. Leaks can develop for a number of different reasons, some of which are harder to diagnose than others, but once you understand where the leak is and what caused it, treatment is usually very successful. Below, we take a closer look at the causes, symptoms, and treatment options for cerebrospinal fluid leaks.

Causes of CSF Leak

Causes of Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) leaks include:

Infection
An epidural injection
An anesthetic injection
A lumbar puncture
Brain tumors
Surgery on or around the base of the skull or spine
Structural abnormalities of the skull that have been present from birth

Increased pressure in the brain from conditions such as hydrocephalus

Spontaneous CSF leaks are associated with developmental defects of the skull bones that cause the membranes (meninges) to protrude. An opening in the membranes makes the nervous system more susceptible to infection.

When left untreated, 25 to 50 percent of CSF leaks lead to meningitis.

Symptoms of CSF Leak

Symptoms of a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) leak can include:

Headache, which feels worse when sitting up or standing and better when lying down; may come on gradually or suddenly:

Vision changes (blurred vision, double vision, visual field changes)
Hearing changes/ringing in ears
Sensitivity to light
Sensitivity to sound
Balance problems
Neck stiffness and pain
Nausea and vomiting
Pain between the shoulder blades
Arm pain

In addition to these symptoms, other symptoms unique to cranial CSF leaks include:

Clear, watery drainage usually from only one side of the nose or one ear when tilting the head forward
Salty or metallic taste in the mouth
Drainage down the back of the throat
Loss of smell

Treatment of CSF Leak

Spinal CSF leak is a critical disorder and requires a treatment that can cure this disease completely. Present treatments, unfortunately, haven't proven to be effective and provide only temporary relief to the patients. Patients also go for various repetitive treatments to minimize the symptoms but none has provided any long-lasting results.

Stem cell therapy, on the other hand, has delivered a promising result by providing great relief from the immense pain. It’s a natural healing process that is used to cure the Spinal CSF. For patients with a CSF release, the recently infused cells improve the blood flow and empower the normal mending procedure to make a fibrin fix that will obstruct the hole. This encouraged normal procedures and offered patients an enduring, painless outcome.