M.Blue^™ Valve

Taking the headaches out of treating Hydrocephalus

The M.blue Valve is the essence of many years of expert experience, dating back to 1992, with hydrocephalus and valve technology and the feedback of numerous doctors and patients worldwide. 

Hydrocephalus has many causes and diverse forms. Beyond that, every person is unique. On average, a person’s day is divided into 8 hours of sleep and 16 hours of daytime activities. While the resting phases hardly differ from each other, there are big differences in the daily activities from person to person and patient to patient. For an optimal and individual treatment, it is crucial to focus on the pressure customization for the active time of day, i.e. the upright body position. The M.blue Valve is a valve for various forms of hydrocephalus and is highly customizable to provide optimal therapy. 

Valve Function

The M.blue Valve is a hydrocephalus valve operating in a position-dependent manner. It consists of an adjustable gravitational unit and a fixed differential pressure unit. 

The combination of these two units ensures automatic adjustment of the opening pressure depending on the patient’s body position and counteracts the risk of possible overdrainage complications, especially in the upright and active body position. 

Particularly challenging and difficult forms of hydrocephalus require a much greater flexibility in treatment. The M.blue plus^® Valve is a combination of an adjustable gravitational unit and an adjustable differential pressure unit (proGAV^® 2.0 Valve) to provide a customizable solution.

Both M.blue Valve variants are made of robust and biocompatible titanium and are the result of precise precision engineering.

The Balanced Way of Life. Inspired By You

The differential pressure unit in the M.blue Valve is available in 0,5,10 and 15 cmH₂0. The selected opening pressure of the differential pressure unit is effective in all body positions. When lying down, the differential pressure unit acts alone and usually has a low selected opening pressure, the valve drains Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) when the brain pressure increases during sleep and rest phases. If the brain pressure rises above the selected opening pressure, the microspiral spring is activated, the differential pressure valve opens and allows CSF to pass through until the brain pressure has achieved an optimal level.  

The gravitational unit in the M.blue Valve is adjustable from 0-40 cmH₂0 and is only activated in the upright body position. The sum of both units – gravitational and differential pressure unit – determines the total opening pressure of the M.blue Valve. 

The more upright the patient is, the higher the opening pressure of the M.blue Valve. The considerably higher opening pressure in the active phases of the day is particularly important because hydrostatic and hydrodynamic phenomena in the shunt system take effect in the upright body position and pose risk of overdrainage.  

Depending on the body position of the patient, the influence of the weighted balls change and affect the valve opening pressure. The M.blue plus^® Instruments are used to adjust the opening pressure of the valve.

The MIETHKE App demonstrates the functionality of the adjustment and the position-dependent opening pressures (for Android and IOS). Simply download or update the app from the Apple Store or Google Play Store.