Talk:Cerebrospinal fluid leak

Proposed merge of Spontaneous cerebrospinal fluid leak into Cerebrospinal fluid leak
Needless separation. Target page would be better as main page that includes spontaneous as a type. SCFL was graded GA in 2009; feel that this is now unwarranted - there are many errors such as "Empty sella syndrome is a bony structure...." , and refs not matching material. A merge would make for a more complete page which could then be re-presented for assessment. Iztwoz (talk) 20:31, 29 May 2020 (UTC)
 * Support agree. These are better covered in the same article. In particular, spontaneous CSF leaks has a large amount of content relating in general to CSF leaks. --Tom (LT) (talk) 14:36, 30 May 2020 (UTC)
 * Support I think that the content overlap is more than sufficient to warrant an uncontested merge to the main article. CV9933 (talk) 16:28, 30 July 2020 (UTC)
 * ✅ Klbrain (talk) 11:16, 15 May 2021 (UTC)


 * comment please undo this merger. My son has CHRONIC CSF (due to excess drainage from shunt). Chronic CSF occurs in 10% of Cerebral_shunt cases & needs separate wiki content. Do not merge Spontaneous CSF with same.    signed by J mareeswaran (talk) 22:02, 4 August 2023 (UTC)
 * A lot has been done on the page since the merge more than two years ago, so a reverse doesn't seems appropriate, but it's always possible to propose a WP:SPLIT. Feel free to make the case through that process! Klbrain (talk) 10:03, 5 August 2023 (UTC)

3 types of CSF
From NIH

"The most common cause of leaking cerebrospinal fluid is a structural compromise secondary to craniofacial trauma, making up 80% of CSF leaks. Iatrogenic causes comprise 16% of CSF leaks, with the last (spontaneous?)4% due to varied etiologies. CSF leak is typically classified into spontaneous/idiopathic, traumatic, and iatrogenic.[9][10]

Craniofacial trauma can lead to varied presentations of CSF leak, determined primarily by injury location and mechanism of action. Skull base CSF leaks occur when there is an abnormal communication between the subarachnoid space and air space in the paranasal sinuses, nasal cavity, middle ear, or mastoid cells.[11]Anterior skull base fractures are frequently associated with moderate-to-high-velocity impact. The cribriform plate, ethmoid bone, and sphenoid sinuses are thin and closely associated with the dura. Less regularly, fractures of the temporal bone (middle ears or mastoid cells) are associated with dural disruption, which can also result in CSF leak through the ears (otorrhea). Rarely, injury and disruption to the orbit can result in CSF occulorrhea.[12]

Iatrogenic CSF leaks occur most frequently as sequelae to functional endoscopic sinus surgery. The cribriform plate and ethmoid bone are the most commonly injured, followed by the frontal and sphenoid sinuses.[9][13] Neurosurgical interventions contribute to iatrogenic leaks, especially with the increased prevalence of endoscopic transnasal pituitary surgeries. The proposed etiologies of these leaks range from anatomical variations to technical factors and may be recognized intra- or postoperatively. In one study, pituitary tumor resection made up nearly half of the cases where tumor removal led to a confirmed CSF leak.[13] Spinal CSF leaks may also occur after procedures such as lumbar punctures, lumbar-abdominal shunt track, epidural anesthesia, and spinal surgery.[14]

Spontaneous CSF leaks occur without an obvious inciting event, often at the spine level, only rarely from the skull base. Spontaneous leaks are typically attributed to underlying conditions resulting in decreased intracranial pressure (ICP), leading to orthostatic headaches, the most common clinical manifestation.[15][16] Four types of spontaneous spinal CSF leaks and their incidence among 568 patients were recently proposed by Schievink et al.[17]"

J mareeswaran (talk) 01:49, 13 January 2024 (UTC)


 * Hello J mareeswaran I have removed your "Split" tag - there was no place available on link to discuss this. If you look at the guidance on page WP:Splitting this would be helpful. Best --Iztwoz (talk) 07:49, 14 January 2024 (UTC)
 * The page cerebral shunt may have more relevance.--Iztwoz (talk) 08:02, 14 January 2024 (UTC)