NPH? going to Neurosurgeon

KayBug

Hi -

My mom is 87, living in memory care for about 5 months.

She was living alone in her home till Aug 2020, I found her on floor of her bathroom disoriented, soiled and talking about people who were no longer alive.  Took her to hospital where she did poorly on memory tests and had a stage 4 pressure ulcer on her bottom. She had been gradually declining mentally and physically for a few years.

She went to SNF for 5 weeks for sore and then to memory care as recommended by doctors at SNF.  She was given a referral to a neurosurgeon from the hospital stay, possible NPH.  I am taking her this week and unsure what questions to ask or how to discuss with dr. in front of my mom.  She gets upset when people talk about her when she's there ( can't blame her). But, she is not able to give the accurate info they need. I would like diagnosis from a dr.

Any advise would be appreciated.

LaurenB

Can you call the doctor's office ahead of time and let them know that you would like to speak with them when your mom is having other routine measurements done (weight, height)?  Something where she wouldn't suspect that you are "going behind her back."  If not, you might want to write a letter to hand to the nurse when you first arrive so that while you are sitting in the office waiting for the dr to come in, they would have a chance to get fully caught up.  Additionally, request to be present for the entire appointment.  You are there to advocate for her best interests.

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M1

One way to tell if a shunt is going to help is to do a large-volume spinal tap (remove a relatively large volume of spinal fluid) and see if there's any improvement.  if there is, it argues for doing the surgery.  If not, it argues against it.  I would ask about that, it's a less invasive procedure.