CSF collection

Injury	Disease	Nutrition	Poison

Symptoms	Surgery	Test	Special Topic

CSF chemistry

CSF collection

Alternative Names:

Spinal tap; Ventricular puncture; Lumbar puncture; Cisternal puncture; Cerebral spinal fluid culture
What the risks are:

Risks of lumbar puncture include:
- Hypersensitivity (allergic) reaction to the anesthetic.
- Discomfort during the test.
- Headache after the test.
- Bleeding into the spinal canal.
Brain herniation (if performed on a person with increased intracranial pressure), and resulting in brain damage or death.
Damage to the spinal cord (particularly if the person moves during the test).
Cisternal puncture or ventricular puncture carry additional risk of damage to the brainstem or brain tissue and risk of bleeding within the brain; resulting in incapacitation or death.

Special considerations:

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This test should not be performed on people who may have increased intracranial pressure.

References:

Nathan, BR. Cerebrospinal Fluid and Intracranial Pressure. In: Goetz, CG, ed. Textbook of Clinical Neurology, 2nd ed. Philadelphia, Pa:WB Saunders Company; 2003:511-524.