Former child star and boxer, Danny Bonaduce, recently revealed that he was scheduled for brain surgery following problems with his health resulting from a chronic neurological disorder. After struggling to determine what’s causing his health issues, he is ready to receive some kind of relief.
Bonaduce was an actor and an athlete
During the 1970s, Danny Bonaduce starred as a child actor in The Partridge Family, a musical sitcom that aired for four seasons. He would make several other appearances on screen over the years, including in Monk, Girlfriends, and Sabrina the Teenage Witch.
Bonaduce had also worked in radio for quite some time, hosting his very own program, The Danny Bonaduce Show. As an adult, Bonaduce explored boxing and wrestling, hopping into the ring with Donny Osmond and Barry Williams for various charity events. He took fighting very seriously, announcing his professional wrestling career in 1994.
No one could figure out what was ailing him
Bonaduce has been on a difficult health journey recently. To figure out what was going on with him, he visited “100 doctors” until someone was finally able to give him a diagnosis. They determined that he was suffering from hydrocephalus, a neurological disorder that is also referred to as “water on the brain.”
In order to alleviate the symptoms of the disorder, he underwent brain surgery. Beforehand, he said that surgeons will place a “shunt in my head” and use a “drainboard” to remove the liquid from his brain.
Bonaduce was hopeful that the procedure will help, but tried not to get his hopes up too high, as he “will be completely bummed out if this doesn’t work.” He said, “I’d rather be safe than sorry. I don’t want to get my hopes up too much that I’ll be cured.”
He also revealed that the disorder is seriously affecting his life. “I can’t walk currently, I just can’t,” he explained. “I’m never gonna run track, never gonna box again, but if I can get from here to my kitchen on my own, bravo!” The hydrocephalus also affected his balance and speech.
He blames his former lifestyle for causing the disorder
Although he is not entirely sure what might have caused the hydrocephalus, Bonaduce has a feeling it might have been the result of his previous lifestyle. “I’ve done so many stupid things,” he said. “I took a guitar to the head. That hurt, and was possibly the cause of all this.”
His work as a boxer probably didn’t help either. “I got punched in the face by Jose Canseco, a 265-lb. professional athlete. And by the way, I didn’t hit the floor.” These blows to the head could very well have caused the neurological disorder.
There is no cure for hydrocephalus
Hydrocephalus is when cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) builds up in excess in the brain. CSF already surrounds the brain, but too much of it can cause the brain’s ventricles to swell and cause damage. This can affect the organ’s ability to process information and function properly.
There is currently no cure for hydrocephalus, but it can be alleviated and controlled when treated efficiently and effectively. The shunt that Bonaduce received during his surgery is a flexible piece of tubing that helps to control the flow of CSF. It directs the excess CSF away from the brain and into other parts of the body, most commonly the belly.
The surgery went well
The brain surgery is now over, and his wife, Amy Bonaduce, updated fans to let them all know he is recovering well. “It’s been a long day but I just wanted to let you guys know that Danny’s surgery went according to plan and he’s doing well,” she wrote in a Tweet on June 6, 2023.
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To help with his health journey, the couple decided to list their home in the Queen Anne neighborhood of Seattle and moved into a condo downtown.