Ventriculitis in infants: diagnosis by color Doppler flow imaging.

A color Doppler flow imaging technique was used to study the dynamics of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in infants with meningitis. Eight infants with bacterial meningitis (6) or aseptic meningitis (2) were studied with color Doppler imaging of CSF flow for a total of 18 times. In 2 infants with bacterial meningitis, Doppler sonograms of CSF flow were obtained in the aqueduct during the acute stage. The CSF flow demonstrated a to-and-fro motion which was synchronized with cardiac pulsations and respiration. The detection of CSF flow on color Doppler flow imaging in the aqueduct may indicate the existence of ventriculitis. Color Doppler flow imaging is useful for the evaluation of CSF flow dynamics in infants.