I have had a shunt for three years. The first surgery I had was not a shunt it was another option. Where they open holes in the ventricle floor to allow flow of csf. Unfortunately for me mine developed scar tissue and caused another blockage. Thus the need for the shunt.

I am probably a rare case but I was diagnosed at 7 years old and didn't need a revision until I was 30 years old. I played sports and did everything any normal kid did. Having the surgery as a kid was so much easier on me then this recent one. Good luck with everything! Kids are resilient souls

I don't know the answer to your question but just wanted to wish you luck. My son has had 6 shunt related surgeries but is still thriving- doing awesome in school and is otherwise healthy.

Thank you for your responces! He will be 8 months on the 8th. Still asymptomatic so they still haven't placed a shunt. Abd are actually trying to avoid it still to my surprise. We are doing another ultrasound because his fonetell is slightly larger than they would like it to be. And his head growth is still increasing instead of plateauing off. So we will see what this next ultrasound says.

My son (now 3.5) was
diagnosed in utero with congenital heart disease as well as "Ventrigulomegaly" (enlarged ventricles). It never got better, so upon birth it was considered hydrocephalus, It was a little scary hearing what the outcomes could/would be, but....
although he had very large ventricles, he didn't have the internal pressure requiring him to need a shunt. (yet!) He just had a large head, and very large ventricles, so less room for the brain itself to grow. (But he didn't LOOK "different"...his Dad has a large head I think, so whatevs...)
Anyhow, fast forward to 6 months, he had his 1st open heart surgery (bi-directional Glenn), which a complication from that is fluid retention, and that pushed him over the edge now needing the Shunt.
So open heart surgery, then 3 weeks later, shunt surgery. 3 weeks after that, his shunt failed, and he needed another procedure. We "installed" an adjustable shunt at this point. It does need to be adjusted after an MRI, and magnets of any sort should stay away from his shunt area, as well as getting a tablet too close, too, from what we understand. A few weeks after the 2nd Shunt, it had drained too much, shrinking the ventricles too much, and caused bleeding in the brain, and required burr holes to be drilled, and an adjustment to the shunt until we found the right balance. Itvhas been working fine ever since.

I'm sure every child is different, but the emotional and mental trauma caused from doctors giving me a heads up about "preparing" for a child with such issues, or even reading stuff online was heartbreaking....when that is obviously not always the case, as our baby Jordan is cognitively aware, learning all of the time..he is smart, he is funny, SO sweet, caring, polite, and just a true joy to be around.
Granted, he gets PT, OT, as well as speech therapy, but being slightly behind in the speaking department, is not that big of a deal in the big picture. He learned sign language to help with our communication, and his expressive abilities are catching up very quickly.
He just completed his 2nd open heart surgery (Fontan), and we don't even blink about his hydrocephalus/shunt.
Hopefully your little one will be just fine, and have a great outcome as well, so be hopeful.