For several decades, pathologists observed that coronary atherosclerosis is generally limited to subepicardial segments and that intramyocardial coronary segments rarely show atherosclerosis. They also observed that pericardial fat is primarily located along the main coronary branches. These 2 observations led investigators to suspect and confirm a relationship between pericardial fat and coron...

BACKGROUND The aim of the current study was to examine whether the use of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) in patients with HIV is associated with changes in pericardial fat and myocardial lipid content measured by cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR). METHODS In this prospective case-control study, we compared 27 HIV seropositive (+) male subjects receiving HAART to 22 control...

BACKGROUND Although increased volume of pericardial fat has been associated with decreased cardiac function, it is unclear whether this association is mediated by systemic overall obesity or direct regional fat interactions. We hypothesized that if local effects dominate, left ventricular (LV) function would be most strongly associated with pericardial fat that surrounds the left rather than th...

An otherwise healthy 56-year-old woman (BMI, 31 kg/m) presented to our emergency department with acute nonradiating left-sided chest pain. She had no associated dyspnea, fever, or other clinical findings. An electrocardiogram and serum troponin level were unremarkable. Nonenhanced computed tomography (CT) of the chest (Figure 1) showed a left anterior low-attenuation (−80HU) pericardial mass wi...

We were greatly interested by the study by Wong et al. (1) on pericardial fat and atrial fibrillation (AF) outcomes. This study further highlights the association of pericardial fat with cardiac disease. The authors remark that pericardial fat may predict the severity and symptomatic burden of AF and recurrence of AF after conventional AF ablation techniques. The authors have used the term peri...

Pericardial fat accumulation has been associated with an increased cardiovascular risk. A very low calorie diet (VLCD) improves the cardiovascular risk profile in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), by improving the metabolic profile, heart function, and triglyceride (TG) stores in (non)adipose tissues. However, long-term effects of a VLCD on pericardial fat volume and tissue-specifi...

OBJECTIVE To determine whether greater pericardial fat volume would be associated with increased risk of incident atrial fibrillation (AF). METHODS In the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis and Jackson Heart Study, pericardial fat volume was quantified by computed tomography. Incident AF was identified from discharge diagnosis codes, study electrocardiograms, and Medicare claims. RESULTS...

Cardiac tamponade is the phenomenon of hemodynamic compromise caused by a pericardial effusion. Following a myocardial infarction, the most common causes of pericardial fluid include early pericarditis, Dressler's syndrome, and hemopericardium secondary to a free wall rupture. On transthoracic echocardiography, pericardial fluid appears as an echo-free space in between the visceral and parietal...

BACKGROUND Liver fat and visceral adiposity are involved in the development of the metabolic syndrome (MetS). Ectopic fat accumulation within and around the heart has been related to increased risk of heart disease. The aim of this study was to explore components of cardiac steatosis and their relationship to intra-abdominal ectopic fat deposits and cardiometabolic risk factors in nondiabetic o...