By using excised postmortem hearts obtained from 15 mongrel dogs with the pericardium intact, we investigated mechanical interactions between the four heart chambers from the standpoint of ventricular pressure-volume relationships. The interactions investigated were those between (1) the atrium and the ventricle, (2) the right ventricle and left ventricles, (3) the atrium and one ventricle vs. ...

OBJECTIVE Anticalcification strategies of glutaraldehyde-fixed xenograft tissue aim to extract lipids or to neutralize toxic aldehyde residuals. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of octanediol compared to standard treatments of glutaraldehyde-fixed bovine pericardium in the subdermal rat model. Octanediol treatment is an ethanolic solution (40%) containing a long chain alip...

S = support of heart afforded by the pericardium T = tone of muscle. The support of the pericardium is due to the negative pressure in the pericardial cavity which I have shown is present in health. This negative pressure causes a suction action which keeps the pericardium right up against the heart save for the thin layer of pericardial fluid so necessary for lubrication. F varies directly wit...

Pericardial cysts are rare benign lesions of the thoracic cavity and are mostly congenital anomalies. They are induced by an incomplete coalescence of foetal lacunae during the development of the pericardium. Pericardial cysts are usually unilocular, well marginated spherical or teardrop shaped and may be attached to the pericardium directly or by a pedicle. Of all pericardial cysts, 70 to 75% ...

We present a case of a large thymoma with invasion to the hilum of the lung and pleural dissemination. A 58-year-old woman was diagnosed with a type B2 thymoma, with suspected pericardium, pulmonary artery and left lung invasion and pleural metastasis (Masaoka-Koga stage IVb). A radical resection was planned after systemic chemotherapy. Through a median sternotomy, we resected the tumour, and a...

A 56-year old lady presented with mild chest pain. The echocar-diography revealed gross pericardial effusion. Repeated percu-taneous aspirations were performed. Ultimately, computed tomography helped in reaching the diagnosis of pericardial hydatid disease (Fig. 1A). On operating, a single infected cyst was found encompassing the heart with multiple daughter cysts (Figs 1B and 2A–C). Figure 1: ...

INTRODUCTION Pericardial defects are a rare condition, generally asymptomatic, due to failure in development of pericardial sac. They are difficult to detect, particularly the complete absence of the pericardium. At present magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is considered the best performing exam and it could be the first choice in the diagnosis of agenesia of the pericardium. MATERIALS AND MET...

A PATIENT with a pericardial effusion may frequently present a diagnostic problem. A primary malignancy of the heart or pericardium is one of the rare causes of such an effusion. Lymburner1 at the Mayo Clinic reported an incidence of .05 per cent in 8,500 consecutive autopsies. Mesotheliomas compose only a small percentage of the primary tumors of the heart and pericardium. Dawe, Wood, and Mitc...

We report four cases in which a pericardium (Tutoplast) plug was used to repair a corneoscleral fistula after Ahmed Glaucoma Valve (AGV) explantation. In four cases in which the AGV tube had been exposed, AGV explantation was performed using a pericardium (Tutoplast) plug to seal the defect previously occupied by the tube. After debridement of the fistula, a piece of processed pericardium (Tuto...