http://www.lumbarpuncture.net Everything about Lumbar puncture Wed, 30 Jul 2008 21:55:49 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en It is in your patients interest that you correctly handle the CSF specimen. In summary get your sample to the lab as quickly as possible and remember to protect it from light. The recent revised guidelines for the analysis of CSF for bilirubin in suspected subarachnoid haemorrhage recommend ... http://www.lumbarpuncture.net/2008/07/30/csf-sample-handling/ I'm not sure I can ever recall a lumbar puncture being mentioned in the news.  This is extraordinary as there are probably several million lumbar puncture procedures performed each year.  In addition about 1% of women aged 40 to 50 years will have a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis and may ... http://www.lumbarpuncture.net/2008/06/06/lumbar-puncture-news/ Lumbar Puncture: Remember to Measure Opening Pressure The usual reason for not measuring opening pressure at lumbar puncture is forgetting to include a manometer (pressure guage) in your equipment. At LP, opening pressure should be measured without exception in the investigation of acute headache. Always remember to measure opening pressure with ... http://www.lumbarpuncture.net/2008/06/05/lumbar-puncture-opening-pressure/ New guidelines on testing cerebrospinal fluid, obtained at lumbar puncture, for evidence of bleeding into the brain have been published. They can be found in the Lumbar Puncture Directory. The guidelines have been issued by the UK NEQAS Specialist Advisory Group for EQA of CSF Proteins and ... http://www.lumbarpuncture.net/2008/06/01/lumbar-puncture-subarachnoid/ Lumbar Puncture fact #4 Manometry is the measurement of CSF pressure using a 40cm long plastic gauge. The most common error is not to attemmpt to measure pressure! Measuring pressure is essential in patients presenting with acute headache, as a high or low opeinng pressure may be the only ... http://www.lumbarpuncture.net/2008/05/12/lumbar-puncture-measure-opening-pressure/ Lumbar Puncture Guideline for You to Copy and Use I've written my own guideline for doing Lumbar Puncture for my own hospital.  This should reflect best practice.  You can copy this for your own hospital, and adapt it where necessary.  Please remember to quote your source - it is copyrighted, but ... http://www.lumbarpuncture.net/2008/05/12/lumbar-puncture-guideline-for-you-to-copy-and-use/ You can use web feeds or RSS feeds to keep up to date. I've set up a feed here, which will search for articles from major journals on lumbar puncture. You can subscribe and you will pick up the latest journal articles on lumbar puncture. [carpwp:feed{http://lumbarpuncture.net/neuronews.php}]maxitems=16[/carpwp] http://www.lumbarpuncture.net/2008/05/10/neurologyfeedscom/ Lumbar Puncture Fact #3 22 guage atraumatic needles are now recommended for diagnostic Lumbar Puncture (LP). An atraumatic needle has a rounded tip and is said to avoid cutting the fibres of the dura. If the fibres of the dura are separated without cutting, and the resulting hole ... http://www.lumbarpuncture.net/2008/05/08/lumbar-puncture-atraumatic-needles/ Lumbar Puncture Needle Selection The issue of needle selection is almost resolved. The most up to date recommendation from the American Academy of Neurology is that 22 guage atraumatic needles should be used, as they are asociated with the lowest risk of an LPs most frequent complication - the post-LP headache.  The ... http://www.lumbarpuncture.net/2008/05/08/lumbar-puncture-needle/ Lumbar Puncture Fact #2 The distance from skin to the ligamentum flavum (the tough ligament just befire you reach the epidural space) is between 4 and 7cm in adults. Does anyone know an up-to-date study of this (i.e. if we are getting more obese, is this still true today?) http://www.lumbarpuncture.net/2008/05/08/lumbar-puncture-anatomy-ligamentum-flavum/