What is normal pressure hydrocephalus, the brain disorder affecting Billy Joel?

CBC News

· Posted: May 23, 2025 5:05 PM EDT | Last Updated: 27 minutes ago

Singer Billy Joel said Friday helium was precocious diagnosed with mean unit hydrocephalus, a encephalon disorder. He said it's affected his hearing, imaginativeness and balance.

The encephalon upset tin origin problems with walking, bladder power and thinking.

In a statement, Joel said he's undergoing circumstantial carnal therapy and has been advised to intermission performances portion helium recovers. 

Here are immoderate facts astir the condition.

What is hydrocephalus?

Hydrocephalus is an abnormal buildup of fluid wrong the brain. 

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), which is produced successful the brain's 4 hollow ventricles oregon chambers, protects and cushions the encephalon and spine and normally gets reabsorbed into the bloodstream.

But when the travel of CSF to the extracurricular of the encephalon is interrupted oregon blocked, excessively overmuch builds up.  

What happens successful mean unit hydrocephaly?

Normal unit hydrocephaly tin effect from a stroke to the head, infection, tumour, a complication of country oregon different reasons.

But galore radical make it without immoderate of these factors, according to the U.S. National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. 

The summation successful CSF happens dilatory capable that unit does not summation successful the skull. 

Normal unit hydrocephaly is much apt to beryllium diagnosed successful radical implicit the property of 55. Joel is 76.

Another type of hydrocephaly is congenital hydrocephalus, which is contiguous astatine birth. It can beryllium caused by wellness conditions, specified as spina bifida.

How is it diagnosed?

When mean unit hydrocephalus is suspected, a household doc whitethorn notation you to a neurologist. The specializer evaluates however the idiosyncratic walks, processes accusation and speaks and whitethorn bid tests and imaging, specified arsenic a CT scan. 

The symptoms of mean unit hydrocephalus are akin to Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, the advocacy group Hydrocephalus Canada said.

"The operation of dementia-like symptoms, altered walking (shuffling feet, abbreviated steps, a feeling similar one's feet are stuck to the floor) and urinary incontinence should alert your wellness attraction supplier to see [hydrocephalus]," the group said. 

Bladder relation whitethorn besides beryllium affected. 

What are the attraction options?

In the astir communal treatment, surgeons spot a shunt that drains the excess CSF from the encephalon to elsewhere successful the body, specified arsenic the thorax cavity. 

A shunt is simply a flexible portion of tubing that is attached to a valve that controls the travel of CSF.