OBJECTIVES: Shunts provide standard means of monitoring intracranial pressure and alleviating raised cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Up to 15% of patients with shunts develop an infection. Antibiotic-impregnated catheters (AICs) were used with the goal to reduce shunt-related CSF infections and the associated complications. The study was conducted to determine whether adopting AICs as a strategy to reduce shunt infections in Canadian hospitals would be cost-effective. METHODS: Clinical and economic data was obtained from peer-reviewed literature along with case-costing data from a large Canadian hospital. One and two way sensitivity analyses were conducted on clinical and economic parameters. The model outcomes reflect that of a hospital with 250 shunt implantations per year. The clinical data used to demonstrate a reduction in shunt infections resulting from the use of AICs comes from a 2011 meta-analysis (Klimo et al., 2011) as well as from the outcomes of the Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program. Information regarding the cost of treating an infected patient was obtained from a large Canadian hospital. RESULTS: Adopting AICs in shunt implantations could result in a relative risk reduction of 50% in shunt-related CSF infections. Using a hypothetical hospital that completes a total of 250 shunt implantations per year would experience 16 shunt infections using conventional catheters. Adopting AICs would reduce the number of infections to 8, for a total reduction of 8 shunt infections.  The model establishes that the use of AICs has the potential to provide the hospital with a yearly net cost savings. Taking into account the catheter replacement costs associated with shunt infections, the hospital would still achieve a cost savings of $509,632 per year despite the added upfront costs of AICs. CONCLUSIONS: AICs are a cost-effective strategy that can be used to prevent shunt-related CSF infection after shunt implantation in Canadian hospitals.