PRINTER'S NO. 1161
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
SENATE RESOLUTION
No.
180
Session of
2017
INTRODUCED BY McGARRIGLE, FONTANA, EICHELBERGER, BROWNE,
GREENLEAF, LANGERHOLC, BAKER, MARTIN, STREET, YAW, REGAN,
RAFFERTY, KILLION, DINNIMAN, BOSCOLA, COSTA, BREWSTER,
AUMENT, SCHWANK, WAGNER, FOLMER, VULAKOVICH, SABATINA,
MENSCH, VOGEL, BLAKE, FARNESE, SCARNATI, HAYWOOD, HUGHES,
SCAVELLO, BROOKS, ALLOWAY, RESCHENTHALER, BARTOLOTTA,
HUTCHINSON, CORMAN, GORDNER, STEFANO, TOMLINSON, McILHINNEY,
LAUGHLIN AND WHITE, SEPTEMBER 18, 2017
INTRODUCED AND ADOPTED, SEPTEMBER 18, 2017
A RESOLUTION
Designating the month of September 2017 as "Hydrocephalus
Awareness Month" in Pennsylvania.
WHEREAS, Hydrocephalus is a condition in which an abnormal
accumulation of fluid in the cerebral ventricles causes
enlargement of the skull and compression of the brain,
destroying much of the neural tissue; and
WHEREAS, There is no medical therapy to treat hydrocephalus,
and the only effective treatments are surgical; and
WHEREAS, While many people are helped by surgery, many more
need further operations to stay well; and
WHEREAS, Out of more than 40,000 hydrocephalus operations
performed annually, only 30% are a patient's first surgery to
treat hydrocephalus; and
WHEREAS, The medical costs for treating hydrocephalus are
more than $1 billion per year, yet the National Institutes of
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Health invests less than $1 million per year in hydrocephalus
treatment; and
WHEREAS, More than 1 million Americans are affected by
hydrocephalus from infancy to adulthood; and
WHEREAS, On average, 6,000 babies are born with hydrocephalus
every year, making it as common as Down syndrome and more common
than spina bifida or brain tumors; and
WHEREAS, Hydrocephalus is the most common reason for brain
surgery in children; and
WHEREAS, There are fewer than 10 treatment centers in the
United States that specialize in treating hydrocephalus in
adults; and
WHEREAS, An estimated 375,000 adults over 60 years of age
have Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus, a disorder which often goes
undiagnosed and untreated; and
WHEREAS, Research suggests that treating hydrocephalus in the
elderly population would reduce United States health care
expenditures by $25,000 per patient, or $184 million, over a
five-year period; and
WHEREAS, Hydrocephalus also goes undiagnosed and untreated in
younger adults, leading to substantial work force loss and
health care costs; and
WHEREAS, At times, doctors are understandably reluctant to
take on complicated hydrocephalus cases, particularly in adults,
because little is known about the disorder; and
WHEREAS, Over the last 50 years, there has been no
significant improvement in hydrocephalus prevention and
treatment and no progress toward a cure; and
WHEREAS, This Commonwealth is home to several renowned
medical institutions and other organizations working to increase
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public awareness and develop new treatments that will improve
the lives of those who are affected by this condition; therefore
be it
RESOLVED, That the Senate designate the month of September
2017 as "Hydrocephalus Awareness Month" in Pennsylvania and call
upon all residents of this Commonwealth to observe this month by
participating in activities to raise awareness of hydrocephalus.
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