BACKGROUND Conservative treatment of malignant pericardial effusion by intrapericardial instillation of a sclerosing agent may be an alternative to surgery. METHODS Twenty patients with malignant pericardial effusion were treated by ultrasound guided pericardiocentesis and the intrapericardial instillation of mitomycin C. RESULTS Mitomycin C was effective in controlling the pericardial effu...

In contrast to coronary artery disease, heart failure, valvular disease, and other topics in the field of cardiology, there are few data from randomized trials to guide physicians in the management of pericardial diseases. Although there are no American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology guidelines on this topic, the European Society of Cardiology has recently published useful gui...

which permits unrestricted non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Table 1. Etiological diagnosis and frequency of pericardial involvement in malignant diseases. Prognostic relevance of pericar-dial effusion in patients with malignant diseases TO THE EDITOR: Malignancy is a common cause of peri-cardial effusion, and maligna...

BACKGROUND Pericardial adhesions are a pathophysiological marker of constrictive pericarditis (CP), which impairs cardiac filling by limiting the total cardiac volume compliance and diastolic filling function. We studied diastolic transmitral flow efficiency as a new parameter of filling function in a pericardial adhesion animal model. We hypothesized that vortex formation time (VFT), an index ...

We studied 19 patients with pericardial disease using two-dimensional and three-dimensional transthorathic echocardiography (2DTTE and 3DTTE, respectively) in order to determine whether 3DTTE provides incremental value on top of 2DTTE in the evaluation of these patients. With 3DTTE a more comprehensive assessment of pericardial effusion can be made and both the parietal and visceral layers of t...

OBJECTIVE This study was designed to determine the diagnostic value of 12-lead ECG for pericardial effusion and cardiac tamponade. DESIGN Cross-sectional study. SETTING University hospital. PATIENTS Hospitalized patients with and without pericardial effusion and cardiac tamponade. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS In a blinded manner, we reviewed 12-lead ECGs from 136 patients with echocardiogra...

A 50-year-old Caucasian female presented for a second opinion regarding a newly diagnosed pericardial effusion. Seven months previously, hydrochlorothiazide was introduced into her pharmacologic regimen to aid in the management of her hypertension. A routine echocardiogram indicated a large pericardial effusion with signs of early cardiac tamponade. The patient subsequently underwent successful...

INTRODUCTION Cardiac tamponade is a rare manifestation of hypothyroidism, and a less rare cause of pericardial effusion. The accumulation of the pericardial fluid is gradual, and often does not compromise cardiac hemodynamic function. There is a relationship between the severity and chronicity of the disease with the presence of pericardial effusion. There are few cases describing associated pe...

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic systemic inflammatory condition of unknown etiology that affects the joints and the visceral serosa of heart, lungs and peritoneum. Pericarditis and pericardial effusion are the most common presentations of cardiac involvement. Pericardial tamponade is extremely rare affecting <1% of these patients. We report an interesting case of a young female with poor...