Objective  To observe the clinical efficacy of simultaneous as well as staged cranioplasty and ventriculo-peritoneal(V-P) shunt in the treatment of traumatic hydrocephalus.

  Methods  A total of 53 patients who underwent cranioplasty and V-P shunt were prospectively selected. The patients were divided into simultaneous operation group (n=21) and staged operation group (n=32). The general clinical data and the improvement of hydrocephalus were compared between the two groups, the changes of Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS), Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS), Karnofsky Functional Status Scale (KPS) scores before and after operation, and the occurrence of postoperative complications were compared.

  Results  There was no significant difference in general data between two groups (P>0.05). There were no significant differences in the scores of GCS, GOS and KPS before and after operation between the two groups, and no significant difference in the improvement of hydrocephalus between the two groups after operation was observed(P>0.05). After operation, GCS, GOS and KPS scores of two groups were higher than those before operation, the differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). The incidence of complications in the staged operation group (9.38%) was significantly lower than that in the simultaneous operation group (33.33%), and the difference was statistically significant (P < 0.05).

  Conclusion  Simultaneous cranioplasty, staged cranioplasty and V-P shunt have similar clinical efficacy, but the incidence of complications in the staged operation group is lower, so the patients with traumatic hydrocephalus should be given staged surgery in priority.