Hydrocephalus To reach staff, make an appointment, get directions. There are two basic divisions in hydrocephalus-obstructive and communicating. In obstructive hydrocephalus the fluid is trapped within the spaces in the middle of the brain, and cannot circulate freely around the brain.
Communicating hydrocephalus means that the fluid does flow normally to the outside of the brain.
However, it is not absorbed in a normal manner by the coverings of the brain. Most patients are born with conditions that eventually lead to hydrocephalus, although it can develop later in life. Dandy-Walker malformations affecting the base of the brain. The X-linked hydrocephalus syndrome is an inherited disease that affects males more commonly than females. Most of these diseases cause an obstructive hydrocephalus.