Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus Reporting Standards: A Comprehensive Guideline for Clinical and Research Applications

Introduction: Normal pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) is a distinctive clinical syndrome characterized by specific diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. Despite its significance, existing literature on NPH lacks standardized reporting practices for key areas such as diagnosis, treatment, outcomes, and patient data, leading to inconsistencies across studies. This guideline seeks to establish standardized reporting criteria for NPH research and clinical practice, aiming to improve the reliability, reproducibility, and comparability of findings. By fostering consistency in NPH reporting, this guideline will support more rigorous evaluation and contribute to advancing patient care and research outcomes.

Methods: This systematic literature review will be conducted in line with PRISMA guidelines, incorporating a comprehensive search across databases including Medline, Embase, Web of Science, and EMBASE. Each study's evidence quality will be evaluated using the GRADE system, with careful assessment of adherence to reporting standards recommended by the EQUATOR Network Group. Essential concepts and definitions—such as shunt revision, shunt failure, and infection—will be thoroughly examined, and recommendations for standardized diagnostic criteria will be proposed. Upon completion, a consensus-based NPH reporting guideline will be developed using a modified Delphi method.

Results: The study protocol has been developed and is now in progress.

Conclusion : The NPH Reporting Guideline aims to critically evaluate the existing literature on this condition and propose standardized guidelines for reporting patient characteristics, diagnosis, treatment, monitoring, and outcomes. This initiative seeks to tackle the significant heterogeneity and inconsistencies present in the current literature. The present study has the potential to clarify findings related to NPH, enhancing the quality of evidence and fostering a better understanding of the condition in future research.