Abstract: A catheter assembly for transferring fluid into and out of a ventricle in the brain is disclosed. The catheter assembly include a sheath permanently installed in the brain, a catheter removably disposed in the sheath, and a connector. In some embodiments, the connector includes inner and outer connection portions, the inner connection portion connected to the sheath and catheter, respectively. A distal end of the catheter may include one or more lumens and/or one or more openings for transferring fluid. The catheter assembly may be connected to a shunt valve and distal (e.g., abdominal) catheter. The distal catheter may be removably disposed within a distal sheath that is permanently attached below the skin of the patient.

Abstract: A method and an instrument are presented for reliably, accurately and easily locating intracranial targets and guiding surgical instruments to intracranial targets in human patients. An adjustment apparatus and a portable guider 70 constitute main components of the invention. The method and instrument make use of images of natural reference points or fiducial markers found in CT/MRI images of patient's head. In accordance with the present method, after the adjustment apparatus is mechanically adjusted based on the information gathered from CT/MRI images, the adjustments are transferred by a special procedure to the portable guider. The portable guider is the only component employed during surgery, resulting in minimal general intrusion with the work of the surgeon.