Patients often have a headache or are uncomfortable for the first few days after surgery. However, medicine can usually control their pain. Patients should feel free to discuss pain relief with the doctor or nurse.

It is also common for patients to feel tired or weak. The length of time it takes to recover from an operation varies for each patient.

Other, less common, problems may occur. Cerebrospinal fluid or blood may build up in the brain. This swelling is called edema. The health care team monitors the patient for signs of these problems. The patient may receive steroids to help relieve swelling. A second surgery may be needed to drain the fluid. The surgeon may place a long, thin tube (shunt) in a ventricle of the brain. The tube is threaded under the skin to another part of the body, usually the abdomen. Excess fluid is carried from the brain and drained into the abdomen. Sometimes the fluid is drained into the heart instead.

Infection is another problem that may develop after surgery. If this happens, the health care team gives the patient an antibiotic.

Brain surgery may damage normal tissue. Brain damage can be a serious problem. The patient may have problems thinking, seeing, or speaking. The patient also may have personality changes or seizures. Most of these problems lessen or disappear with time. But sometimes damage to the brain is permanent. The patient may need physical therapy, speech therapy, or occupational therapy.

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