Misunderstood: Monro-Kellie Hypothesis
The Monro-Kellie Hypothesis a misunderstood concept that describes intracranial pressure. This hypothesis states that the sum of the volumes of brain, cerebral spinal fluid, and intracerebral blood is constant, and an increase in one causes a decrease in the others (either one or both). This concept can be described using an analogy of monthly household budgeting:
Let’s say that you have a fixed amount of money available to spend for rent, groceries, and fun each month. If your landlord increases your rent, your spending on groceries and/or fun will have to decrease. You might opt to eat kraft dinner instead of steak for a few meals, or perhaps you will skip going to the movies with friends.
Let’s apply this analogy to the fixed amount of space inside of your skull. If there is a cerebral hemorrhage and the volume of blood increases, the volumes of the other two will have to decrease – this could be done by the cerebral spinal fluid being shunted down the spinal column or with compression of the brain. Your “budget” for brain and cerebral spinal fluid is less because more is being “spent” on blood.
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