Polyvinylpyrrolidone-coated catheters decrease choroid plexus adhesion and improve flow/pressure performance in an in vitro model of hydrocephalus

Purpose Proximal catheter obstruction is the leading cause of ventricular shunt failure in pediatric patients. Our aim is to evaluate various types of shunt catheters to assess in vitro cellular adhesion and obstruction. Methods Four catheter types were tested: (1) antibiotic and impregnated, (2) barium-stripe polyvinylpyrrolidone coated (PVP), (3) barium-stripe, and (4) barium-impregnated. Catheters were seeded with choroid plexus epithelial cells to test cellular adhesion and inoculated with the same cells to test flow/pressure performance under choroid plexus growth conditions. Ventricular catheters were placed into a three-dimensional printed phantom ventricular replicating system through which artificial cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was pumped. Differential pressure sensors were used to measure catheter performance. Results PVP catheters had the lowest median cell attachment (10 cells) compared to antibiotic-impregnated (230 cells), barium stripe (513 cells), and barium-impregnated (146 cells) catheters after culture ( p < 0.01). In addition, PVP catheters (− 0.247 cm H 2 O) and antibiotic-impregnated (− 1.15 cm H 2 O) catheters had significantly lower pressure in the phantom ventricular system compared to the barium stripe (0.167 cm H 2 O) and barium-impregnated (0.618 cm H 2 O; p < 0.01) catheters. Conclusions PVP catheters showed less cellular adhesion and, together with antibiotic-impregnated catheters, required less differential pressure to maintain a consistent flow. Our findings suggest clinical relevance for using PVP ventricular catheters in patients with recurrent catheter obstruction by choroid plexus.