Evaluation of a microsensor intracranial pressure transducer.

This report describes the results of a laboratory evaluation of a new device for monitoring intracranial pressure (ICP), consisting of a miniature pressure transducer mounted on a pressure sensing diaphragm. In in vitro tests, 6 microsensor transducers were monitored for drift at pressures of 10 mmHg and 20 mmHg. The maximal drift of any of the transducers was 1 mmHg over 9 days. In in vivo tests, the ICP measurement obtained with the microsensor transducer correlated well with pressures recorded from a catheter in the cisternal magna with a Statham transducer over a wide range of ICP values (n = 511, r = 0.998, P < 0.001). If these laboratory findings can be duplicated in clinical studies, this microsensor transducer may be a useful alternative to the ventriculostomy catheter and other currently used devices for monitoring ICP.