Constrictive pericarditis
Background[1]
- Occurs when normally elastic pericardium becomes thickened and fibrotic
- Can be infectious, post-cardiac surgery, inflammatory, idiopathic or related to radiation exposure
- Impairs diastolic filling of heart
- Must distinguish from restrictive cardiomyopathy
Clinical Features
- Symptoms similar to congestive heart failure, especially right sided
- Dyspnea
- Lower extremity edema
- Jugular venous distention
Differential Diagnosis
Cardiomyopathy
- Dilated cardiomyopathy
- Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy
- Restrictive cardiomyopathy
- Peripartum cardiomyopathy
- Takotsubo cardiomyopathy
- Arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia
Evaluation
Workup
Diagnosis
Management
- Definitive treatment is surgical pericardiectomy
Disposition
See Also
External Links
References
- ↑ Singh M, Niemann JT. Cardiomyopathies and Pericardial Disease. In: Tintinalli JE, Ma OJ, Yealy DM, et al., eds. Tintinalli’s Emergency Medicine: A Comprehensive Study Guide. 9th ed. McGraw-Hill; 2020:(Ch) 55.