Background: Ventriculoperitoneal shunting (VPS) is the primary treatment for hydrocephalus, significantly improving patients’ outcomes. However, it is marred by high failure rates due to infections, which account for a third of these malfunctions and escalate morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. Method: This study focused on evaluating VPS infection rates, pathogens, their resistance patterns, and the impact on clinical outcomes using retrospective data from multiple hospitals in Saudi Arabia. It included data from hydrocephalus patients who underwent VPS and only considered positive cultures that were confirmed from CSF or shunt tip samples. Results: This study excluded patients with prior infections before VPS placement or those treated with alternatives to VPS. Out of 317 patients who met the inclusion criteria, the analysis revealed that 23 patients (7.26%) suffered from VPS infections, mostly within the first two weeks post-surgery (58.06% of cases), with a significant discrepancy in infection rates between hospitals. Infections predominantly involved Gram-positive bacteria (58.08%), especially coagulase-negative staphylococci and Staphylococcus aureus (25.81% and 12.90%, respectively). There was also a substantial presence of Gram-negative bacteria and fungi, accounting for 35.46% and 6.46%, respectively. Despite general antibiotic susceptibility, resistance was significant in certain cases, including multidrug-resistant isolates like Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Acinetobacter ursingii. Importantly, patients with VPS infections had a tenfold increase in the length of hospital stay (70.84 days, SD ± 139.5) compared to non-infected patients (7.69 days, SD ± 20.72), indicating high morbidity and associated treatment costs. Conclusions: Our results emphasize the importance of better VPS infection control and standardized hospital protocols to decrease the incidence of VPS-related infections, both in Saudi Arabia and globally.

Olea europaea subsp. laperrinei, endemic to the central Sahara in Algeria, Niger, and Sudan, is recognized for its therapeutic and nutritional benefits, notably its antioxidant and antibacterial properties. This study investigates the phytochemical composition and biological activities of its leaf extracts obtained via aqueous and ethanolic extraction. Total phenols, flavonoids, and tannins were quantified by UV–visible spectrophotometry, while individual phenolic compounds were identified by HPLC-UV. Antioxidant capacity was measured using DPPH radical scavenging, hydrogen peroxide neutralization, and β-carotene bleaching assays. Antibacterial activity was evaluated against nine bacterial strains. The ethanolic extract exhibited higher total phenol (134.72 ± 9.25 mg GAE/g VP) and flavonoid (26.08 ± 1.57 mg QE/g VP) contents, while tannin levels were similar in both extracts. Twenty-seven phenolic compounds, including oleuropein, hydroxytyrosol, rutin, and quercetin, were identified. The ethanolic extract showed superior antioxidant capacity, with an EC₅₀ of 7.48 ± 0.39 µg/mL (DPPH) and IC₅₀ values of 214.04 ± 2.89 µg/mL (H₂O₂) and 185.63 ± 3.84 µg/mL (β-carotene). Both extracts exhibited antibacterial effects, with inhibition zones up to 23.33 ± 0.76 mm and MIC values as low as 0.78 mg/mL. These findings highlight the potential of Laperrine olive leaves as natural antioxidant and antibacterial agents.