Telemetric Intracranial Pressure Monitoring: A Systematic Review

Telemetric intracranial pressure (ICP) monitoring is a new method of measuring ICP which eliminates some of the shortcomings of previous methods. However, there are limited data on specific characteristics, including the advantages and disadvantages of this method. The main aim of this study was to demonstrate the indications, benefits, and complications of telemetric ICP monitoring. PubMed, MEDLINE, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials were searched for relevant studies without language or date restriction in May 2019. Human studies in which telemetric ICP monitoring was the main subject of the study were included. Our initial search resulted in 1650 articles from which 50 studies were included. There were no randomized controlled trials. The majority of the studies were case reports or case series (68%). The most common aim of studies was testing of the device (52%), and monitoring the disease progression or recovery (46%). The most common indications for telemetric ICP monitoring in these studies were testing cerebrospinal fluid shunt function (46%), ICP control after the procedure (36%), and diagnosing intracranial hypertension (22%) and hydrocephalus (12%). In total, 1423 brain disease patients had been monitored in studies. The possibility of long-term ICP monitoring as the main benefit was reported in 38 (76%) studies. The associated complication rate was 7.1%. Despite the increasing application of telemetric monitoring devices, studies to evaluate specific characteristics of this method have been infrequent and inadequate. Future research using a higher level of scientific methods is needed to evaluate advantage and disadvantages.