Lumbar Shunt Catheter Kits for LP Shunting: What Each Part Does

A DESU lumbar shunt catheter kit contains a 100 cm radiopaque silicone lumbar catheter, 0.8 mm inner and 1.6 mm outer diameter, with tantalum length marks from 5 to 20 cm and 24 drainage holes, together with a 14 G Tuohy needle, a guidewire and a fixation part. The lumboperitoneal catheter kit adds a 120 cm peritoneal catheter.

Both kits belong to the DESU range of neurosurgical catheters for CSF shunting and drainage. How the catheter is introduced, routed and secured is decided by the surgeon and set out in the instructions for use (IFU).

What is a lumbar shunt catheter used for?

In lumboperitoneal (LP) shunting, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is diverted from the lumbar subarachnoid space to the peritoneal cavity, where it is absorbed. The lumbar catheter forms the spinal end of that pathway. It sits in the lumbar thecal sac and carries CSF away from the spine, either to a valve or onward to a peritoneal catheter, depending on the configuration the surgeon has chosen.

LP shunting is one of several CSF diversion routes, alongside ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunting. For the clinical background and how the routes compare, see our article on lumboperitoneal shunt mechanics and indications.

What is in the DESU lumbar catheter kit, and what is each part for?

The kit is built around one catheter and the three items used to introduce and secure it.

The Tuohy needle has a curved tip, a design widely used for spinal and epidural access because it helps direct a catheter along the spinal canal rather than straight across it. Silicone is soft and flexible, which is what an implanted catheter needs, so a guidewire gives the catheter temporary support during passage. The fixation part addresses a practical concern with any long, soft catheter: keeping it from moving once it is in position.

Why is the lumbar catheter thinner than a ventricular catheter?

The DESU lumbar catheter has a 0.8 mm inner and 1.6 mm outer diameter. The ventricular catheter in DESU shunt kits measures 1.3 mm inner and 2.5 mm outer diameter, and the peritoneal catheter 1.1 mm inner and 2.5 mm outer diameter. The difference reflects how each catheter reaches its target. A ventricular catheter is passed through a burr hole into the ventricle, while a lumbar catheter is introduced percutaneously into the spinal canal through a needle, so its outer diameter has to stay small.

At 100 cm, the lumbar catheter gives the surgeon enough length to route it from the lumbar region toward the flank or abdomen, where it is connected onward according to the chosen configuration.

What do the tantalum marks and drainage holes do?

The lumbar catheter has tantalum length marks at every centimeter from 5 to 20 cm. Tantalum is radiopaque, so the marks, like the catheter itself, can be followed under imaging, and they give the team a visible reference for how much catheter has been introduced. Our article on tantalum length marks and radiopacity explains the principle in more detail.

At the proximal end, the drainage zone has 24 holes arranged in four rows of six. This is the section that sits in the thecal sac and takes in CSF. Spreading the holes over four rows means inflow is not limited to a single opening at the tip.

What does the lumboperitoneal catheter kit add?

The lumboperitoneal catheter kit covers both ends of the LP pathway in one package. It contains:

• Lumbar catheter: silicone, 100 cm, 0.8 mm inner and 1.6 mm outer diameter, tantalum marks from 5 to 20 cm, 24 drainage holes in four rows of six.
• Peritoneal catheter: silicone, 120 cm, 1.1 mm inner and 2.5 mm outer diameter, tantalum marks from 5 to 20 cm.
• Application items: a 14 G Tuohy needle, a guidewire and a fixation part.

The peritoneal catheter carries CSF into the peritoneal cavity. Its dimensions are the same as those of the peritoneal catheter in DESU VP shunt kits, which keeps catheter specifications consistent for departments that perform both procedures.

How do the catheter kits relate to Depus LP shunt kits?

The lumbar and lumboperitoneal catheter kits contain no valve. They are catheter and access kits, used where the surgeon’s chosen configuration calls for them.

Where a complete LP shunt is wanted in one kit, Depus shunts are offered in lumboperitoneal configurations that include the Depus valve, a lumbar catheter and a peritoneal catheter, together with a 14 G Tuohy needle and a 0.018” guidewire. The Depus valve has a polysulfone body with a ruby ball and titanium spring mechanism, and the Depus family includes fixed-pressure valves in low, medium and high settings as well as adjustable valves. Which valve and pressure suit a patient is a surgical decision.

Standard or antibiotic-impregnated: which version is in the box?

Both kits are offered with standard or antibiotic-impregnated catheters. The antibiotic-impregnated lumbar catheter has the same basic dimensions as the standard one. In DESU antibiotic-impregnated catheters, the antibiotic is impregnated into the catheter material and released in a controlled manner over 28 days.

The two versions are easy to tell apart on the tray: antibiotic-impregnated catheters are orange and standard catheters are white. Which version to use is decided by the surgeon, in line with the hospital’s own protocols.

How is this kit different from the lumbar drainage catheter kit?

The names are similar but the purposes differ. The lumbar catheter kit is for shunting: its 100 cm catheter becomes part of an implanted CSF pathway. The lumbar drainage catheter kit is for external lumbar drainage. It has an 80 cm catheter with the same 0.8 mm and 1.6 mm diameters, and adds an angled trocar, a Luer Lock connector and a distal cap for connection to an external drainage system.

Mixing up the two is an easy ordering error. Quoting the product name and the catheter length together, 100 cm for shunting and 80 cm for drainage, avoids it.

Talk to a DESU product specialist

For product codes, IFU copies or samples of the lumbar and lumboperitoneal catheter kits, contact DESU’s product specialists at sales@desu.tr, through the contact page, or request a quote. We can also help you match the catheter kits with Depus LP shunt kits for your account.