{"id":24531,"date":"2020-02-07T17:39:08","date_gmt":"2020-02-07T17:39:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jomec.co.uk\/cjsnews\/?p=24531"},"modified":"2022-11-23T12:58:51","modified_gmt":"2022-11-23T12:58:51","slug":"hydrocephalus-misdiagnoses-risk-lives-says-welsh-charity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/cjsnews\/hydrocephalus-misdiagnoses-risk-lives-says-welsh-charity\/","title":{"rendered":"Hydrocephalus misdiagnoses risk lives, says Welsh charity"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>The disability charity Shine Cymru says more has to be done to stop the misdiagnosis of hydrocephalus, a rare brain condition that can be fatal if not identified.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Hydrocephalus is often onset after a head injury and causes the build up of cerebro-spinal fluid in the skull. A healthy volume of the liquid is needed to bring nutrients to the brain, but when it fails to drain properly it can cause a number of symptoms, such as learning difficulties and memory loss.<\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/cjsnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/07\/Screenshot-2020-07-15-at-11.23.11-700x391.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-25540\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/cjsnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/07\/Screenshot-2020-07-15-at-11.23.11-700x391.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-25540\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption>Shine Cymru volunteer Dean Clarke | Image: Evan John<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>Shine Cymru volunteer Dean Clarke first showed signs of hydrocephalus in his teens. He told CJS News: &#8220;It was difficult in my school years. I was always put down to being clumsy, being a bit slow, because I was having problems with my balance and memory.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>&#8220;The teacher would tell me something and it would go in [one] ear and straight out of the other ear.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n<p>After tests he says his neurologist initially told him nothing was wrong, but a CT scan proved otherwise. Mr Clarke&#8217;s life was saved with a shunt &#8211; a surgically implanted tube that drains away the excess fluid from his brain.<\/p>\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p>It affects every part of your life, from physical to mental, and that&#8217;s hard to cope with on a day-to-day basis<\/p><cite>Dean Clarke, Shine Cymru volunteer<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n<p>Mr Clarke added: &#8220;Hydrocephalus is very difficult to live with. You have good days and bad days. It affects every part of your life, from physical to mental, and that&#8217;s hard to cope with on a day-to-day basis.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n<p>However, with the right management of symptoms following timely diagnosis, Mr Clarke stressed that it is possible to live a relatively normal life.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>Shine Cymru support and development worker Helen Allen told us that Mr Clarke&#8217;s story is not unique, and that quick diagnosis is key to treating hydrocephalus. <\/p>\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/cjsnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/07\/Screenshot-2020-07-15-at-11.47.12-691x394.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-25553\" \/><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/cjsnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/07\/Screenshot-2020-07-15-at-11.47.12-691x394.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-25553\" \/><\/noscript><figcaption>Shine Cymru support and development worker Helen Allen | Image: Evan John<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n<p>However, as its symptoms are similar to other conditions, the early signs often slip under the radar: &#8220;People start having trouble with balance, getting confused, getting memory loss, or urgency to go to the toilet, and a lot of times when they go to their GP practices [they say that it is just] a sign of getting older.<\/p>\n\n\n<p>&#8220;Some of our new members have explained that they&#8217;ve had a lot of misdiagnosis. Some have been described as dementia, [&#8230;] a lot have said they&#8217;ve been misdiagnosed with MS, and some have even been misdiagnosed with Parkinson&#8217;s.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\"><p>Some of our new members have explained that they&#8217;ve had a lot of misdiagnosis.<\/p><cite>Helen Allen, Shine Cymru support and development worker<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n<p>Early signs include severe headaches, nausea and difficulty walking following a head injury. <\/p>\n\n\n<p>These symptoms can develop over a long period of time, so Ms Allen advises anyone concerned to see a specialist as soon as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/shinecymru.co.uk\/\">Shine Cymru<\/a> was at Cardiff&#8217;s University Hospital of Wales today (7th February) as part of its Hydrocephalus Awareness Week.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The disability charity Shine Cymru says more has to be done to stop the misdiagnosis of hydrocephalus, a rare brain condition that can be fatal if not identified. Hydrocephalus is often onset after a head injury and causes the build up of cerebro-spinal fluid in the skull. A healthy volume of the liquid is needed to bring nutrients to the brain, but when it fails to drain properly it can cause a number of symptoms, such as learning difficulties and [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":231,"featured_media":24565,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,18],"tags":[121,122,4,124,125,126,127,128],"coauthors":[974],"class_list":["post-24531","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-slider-story","tag-brain","tag-brain-condition","tag-charity","tag-hydrocephalus","tag-learning-difficulties","tag-memory-loss","tag-shine","tag-shine-cymru"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Hydrocephalus misdiagnoses risk lives, says Welsh charity - CJS News<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/cjsnews\/hydrocephalus-misdiagnoses-risk-lives-says-welsh-charity\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Hydrocephalus misdiagnoses risk lives, says Welsh charity - CJS News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The disability charity Shine Cymru says more has to be done to stop the misdiagnosis of hydrocephalus, a rare brain condition that can be fatal if not identified. Hydrocephalus is often onset after a head injury and causes the build up of cerebro-spinal fluid in the skull. A healthy volume of the liquid is needed to bring nutrients to the brain, but when it fails to drain properly it can cause a number of symptoms, such as learning difficulties and [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/cjsnews\/hydrocephalus-misdiagnoses-risk-lives-says-welsh-charity\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"CJS News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-02-07T17:39:08+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2022-11-23T12:58:51+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/cjsnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/11\/2020\/02\/University_Hospital_of_Wales_Heath_Park_-_Cardiff_-_geograph.org_.uk_-_1736088.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"789\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Erin Santillo\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Erin Santillo\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/cjsnews\/hydrocephalus-misdiagnoses-risk-lives-says-welsh-charity\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/cjsnews\/hydrocephalus-misdiagnoses-risk-lives-says-welsh-charity\/\",\"name\":\"Hydrocephalus misdiagnoses risk lives, says Welsh charity - 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