Kharghar Hospital Cures Taloja Man's CSF Leak Without Brain Surgery
Doctors at Medicover Hospital in Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, successfully treated a 50-year-old Taloja resident for a rare cerebrospinal fluid leak without brain surgery, resolving over a month of debilitating headaches.
The patient, Manoj Gupta, had been experiencing severe positional headaches that intensified when standing or sitting upright and subsided when lying down. The pain eventually became persistent, reaching an intensity of 8 to 9 on a scale of 10. He was initially diagnosed with bilateral subdural haematoma at another hospital and advised to undergo brain surgery.
Seeking a second opinion at the Kharghar facility, Gupta underwent an evaluation led by Dr Pawan Ojha, Consultant Neurologist and Director of Neurosciences (Maharashtra), and Consultant Neurologist Dr Suranjana Basak. The team suspected Spontaneous Intracranial Hypotension, a rare condition caused by leakage of cerebrospinal fluid.
Diagnostic tests, including CSF pressure manometry, confirmed abnormally low pressure, while CT cisternography pinpointed the leak in the cervical region of the spine. Dr Ojha noted that the bilateral subdural haematoma was a secondary consequence of the CSF leak rather than the primary condition, prompting the medical team to target the underlying leak instead of operating on the brain.
To seal the leak, doctors performed a minimally invasive epidural blood patch procedure, introducing a small amount of the patient's own blood into the epidural space. Dr Basak stated that the procedure was completed without complications.
Following the intervention, Gupta's pain score decreased from 8–9 to 1–2 by the next day, and the headache disappeared completely over the following days. Follow-up imaging showed that the subdural haematoma was gradually shrinking.
Doctors highlighted that positional headaches are key warning signs of CSF leaks and can be mistaken for common headache disorders. Dr Ojha warned that delayed diagnosis could lead to chronic headaches, recurrent haematomas, and other neurological complications.
Gupta stated that seeking a second opinion allowed him to avoid brain surgery and recover within days. Sandeep Joshi, Centre Head at Medicover Hospital, Kharghar, added that the case underscored the importance of detailed clinical assessment and advanced diagnostics in identifying rare neurological conditions.
