A nonlinear viscoelastic fractional derivative model of infant hydrocephalus

Infant communicating hydrocephalus is a clinical condition where the cerebral ventricles become enlarged causing the developing brain parenchyma of the newborn to be displaced outwards into the soft, unfused skull. In this paper, a hyperelastic, fractional derivative viscoelastic model is derived to describe infant brain tissue under conditions consistent with the development of hydrocephalus. An incremental numerical technique is developed to determine the relationship between tissue deformation and applied pressure gradients. Using parameter values appropriate for infant parenchyma, it is shown that pressure gradients of the order of 1 mm Hg are sufficient to cause hydrocephalus. Predicting brain tissue deformations resulting from pressure gradients is of interest and relevance to the treatment and management of hydrocephalus, and to the best of our knowledge, this is the first time that results of this nature have been established. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.