Conclusion
BBB breakdown poses increased propensity for blood to enter the
ventricles which significantly increases astrocyte attachment. Since we
know astrocytes play a major role in shunt obstruction and failure of
shunts used to treat hydrocephalus, this initial study shows the
necessity of future work examining the role blood products play in the
shunted pathology of hydrocephalus and pushes us to examine ways in
which we can inhibit BBB permeability. Future work will examine the
rates of shunt insertion and correlated BBB breakdown. Further
exploration into this topic will also include an analysis of the role of
ependymal cells when exposed to blood following breaking of the BBB.