Polaris® Adjustable Pressure Valve with reservoir - Valve, hydrocephalic

Intended purpose

The Polaris® adjustable pressure valve is intended to shunt the Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) from the ventricular system or subarachnoid spaces to the peritoneal cavity (VPS) or the right atrium of the heart where it will be reabsorbed in the blood flow. The preconnected reservoir is used to assess the patency of the shunt or to access the CSF for injections and/or samples.

Functional description

The valve contains a ball-in-cone mechanism which determines the operating pressure of the valve. Reservoirs are implanted upstream the valve. They provide a direct access to CSF, either for injection or CSF sampling. For some hydrocephalus dedicated teams, they also have a role in the measurement of the intracranial pressure to check that the functionality of the valve meets the patient’s needs.