If the pressure in a patient’s brain is too high, physicians implant a system in the head that regulates the pressure. A sensor can now measure and individually adjust brain pressure. The sensor system is approved for use as a long-term implant. Urinary incontinence, a shuffling gait, and deteriorating reasoning skills are all indicators pointing to a Parkinsonian or Alzheimer type disease. An equally plausible explanation is hydrocephalus, commonly known as “water on the brain.” With this diagnosis, the brain produces either too much cerebral fluid, or it cannot “drain off” these fluids with adequate sufficiency. The consequence: Pressure in the brain rises sharply, resulting in damage. A shunt system – a kind of silicon tube that physicians implant into the patient’s brain, provides relief. It draws off superfluous fluid from there, for example, into the abdominal cavity. The heart of this shunt system is a valve: If the pressure increases above a threshold value, then the valve opens; if it declines again, then the valve closes.
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