Report of Dramatic Improvement after a Lumboperitoneal Shunt Procedure in a Case of Anticoagulation Therapy-Resistant Cerebral Venous Thrombosis

Cerebral venous thrombosis (CVT), which typically progresses from either acute or subacute onset, presents with symptoms related to intracranial hypertension (e.g., headache and papilledema) and brain parenchymal lesions (e.g., aphasia and hemiplegia). Anticoagulation therapy is generally accepted as a treatment for CVT and often leads to good clinical outcomes. However, we experienced a case of CVT with an uncommon clinical course. The patient was a 63-year-old man who presented with headache, papilledema, visual loss, and diplopia; his condition gradually deteriorated, and he was diagnosed with CVT via cerebral angiography. The sinus thrombus was extensive and resistant to anticoagulation therapy, and lumbar puncture revealed a progressive increase in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pressure. We performed a lumboperitoneal (LP) shunt procedure, which yielded marked improvement in the symptoms. The main mechanism of neurological dysfunction in CVT is venous outflow obstruction caused by venous thrombus, which results in brain edema, and/or venous infarction, which induces focal neurological signs. Another mechanism is impaired CSF absorption in the thrombosed sinuses, resulting in intracranial hypertension. We speculated that the latter mechanism strongly influenced our case, thus explaining the uncommon clinical course and effectiveness of the LP shunt procedure. Although LP shunting is not a common treatment for CVT, this case report could indicate the usefulness of this procedure for CVT with chronic progression and resistance to anticoagulation therapy.