UCI Health successfully treats first patient using new system for intracranial bleeding

Dr. Sumeet Vadera is a fellowship-trained UCI Health neurosurgeon who specializes in epilepsy surgery, with expertise in minimally invasive surgery for adult and pediatric patients with epilepsy.

A UCI Health neurosurgeon is the first to successfully treat a patient using a new system call IRRAflow to help relieve intracranial bleeding. Traditionally, surgical treatment relied on an external ventricular drain (EVD) — a gravity-driven device used to drain fluid in increments over a long period of time, when a patient suffered a stroke or other neurological damage.

Draining excess fluid immediately helps to decrease intracranial pressure, and lessens the risk of a second stroke. The EVD can have blockages in the drainage line, and flushing the line or replacing the line or catheter is sometimes required due to obstruction, causing increased rate of infection and extended time in the ICU for patients.

“We are excited to be the first site in the United States to use the IRRAflow system,” said Dr. Vadera, assistant professor of neurological surgery, UCI School of Medicine. Vadera successfully treated a patient suffering from a hematoma after a recent fall.

This cutting edge treatment uses a two-fold approach. An automated drain allows for continuous irrigation of the lines, along with the systematic draining of excess fluid, at the same time. This innovative approach lowers the infection rate, and addresses many of the past complications.

“At UCI, we are committed to providing our patients the latest in cutting-edge treatment options, and we can now provide the first active, therapeutic treatment to manage intracranial fluid with IRRAflow.”

UCI Health comprises the clinical enterprise of the University of California, Irvine. Patients can access UCI Health at primary and specialty care offices across Orange County and at its main campus, UCI Medical Center in Orange, California. The 417-bed acute care hospital provides tertiary and quaternary care, ambulatory and specialty medical clinics, and behavioral health and rehabilitation services. UCI Medical Center features Orange County’s only National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer center, high-risk perinatal/neonatal program and American College of Surgeons-verified Level I adult and Level II pediatric trauma center and regional burn center. UCI Health serves a region of nearly 4 million people in Orange County, western Riverside County and southeast Los Angeles County. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.