A device like this would be life changing for Willie Meyer, 26, who has undergone 190 surgeries, spent virtually every holiday in the emergency room and almost missed his high school graduation because of emergency brain surgeries.

Meyer’s mother, Beth, said she learned Willie had hydrocephalus when he was two years old after complaining that “his hair hurt.”

Symptoms of a malfunctioning shunt, such as headaches and fatigue, are similar to symptoms of other illnesses, which causes confusion and stress for caregivers.

“Every time your kid says they have a headache or feels a little sleepy, you automatically think, ‘Is this the shunt?’" said co-senior author Dr. Matthew Potts, assistant professor of neurological surgery at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and a Northwestern Medicine physician. "We believe that this device can spare patients a lot of the danger and costs of this process.”

Co-lead author Dr. Amit Ayer, who has treated Willie’s hydrocephalus for the last four years, said his patients are a driving force behind his motivation to get the device to market.

“Our patients want to know when they can actually use the device and be part of the trial,” said Ayer, who is a neurosurgery resident at Northwestern Medicine and a student at Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern. “I want to get it out there, so we can help make their lives better.”