With recent moves of HCRN investigators Dr. John Wellons to Vanderbilt University and Dr. John Kestle to University of British Columbia, HCRN has decided to expand its network from seven to nine centers to incorporate their respective hospitals in HCRN research. Each center will begin its trial period immediately which involves adding patients to the HCRN registry as well as participating in the HCRN Quality Improvement Study for post surgical infections. Dr. Kestle will continue in his role as Chairman of HCRN and Dr. Wellons will continue to be the lead PI on the Study of Post Hemorrhagic Hydrocephalus which is nearing the completion of its accrual of patients.

At the last HCRN meeting (November 2012), we discussed ETV/CPC (Endoscopic third ventriculostomy with choroid plexus coagulation). This procedure was pioneered by Dr. Ben Warf (Boston Children’s Hospital) during his time in Uganda and he was a guest at the November HCRN meeting. He reviewed the technique and his data and we discussed the possibility of doing an HCRN study on this procedure. We felt that the first important step in that direction was for some HCRN members to gain additional experience with the technique. Dr. Warf kindly offered to train some HCRN investigators in Uganda. He makes periodic trips there to treat children with hydrocephalus at the Cure Children’s Hospital of Uganda. This month, Dr. Riva-Cambrin from the Salt Lake City HCRN center, Dr. Whitehead from the Texas HCRN center and Dr. Rozzelle from the Birmingham, Alabama HCRN center are in Uganda working with Dr. Warf. Other investigators will be doing the same later this spring. We hope this experience will allow us to study this innovative procedure in the near future.