Treatment of recurrent pericarditis

Recurrent pericarditis is the most common and troublesome complication of pericarditis affecting around a third of patients. Treatment of this condition is often one of the most challenging task in pericardial diseases management, especially in corticosteroids-dependent cases. The aim of this review is to report current knowledge on the treatment, prevention and prognosis of this disease, with a special focus on more recently published contributions during the last 5 years.     

缩窄性心包炎的手术治疗

目的 探讨心包切除术治疗缩窄性心包炎的经验与疗效。方法 39例行全心包切除术，2例行部分心包切除术。结果 37例术后心功能明显改善（94．8％），手术死亡率为0。结论 心包切除术是治疗缩窄性心包炎安全、有效的方法。     

缩窄性心包炎28例超声心动图分析

本文回顾经手术及临床确诊的２８例缩窄性心包炎的超声表现。结果４０％～５０％病例Ｍ型超声示前间壁和左室后壁运动异常；二维超声可发现诸多异常征像：心房增大（７０．０％）、心外形变形（４６．０％）、心包增厚（１００％）、心包积液（８２．１％）、下腔静脉增宽且内径不随呼吸改变（１００％）。实时二维室间隔运动呈抖动状和脉冲式多普勒二尖瓣Ｅ峰幅度吸气时降低＞２５％是诊断缩窄性心包炎较好的指标     

缩窄性心包炎的外科治疗

目的 :探讨提高缩窄性心包炎的手术疗效方法。方法 :回顾性分析近 5年来 95例缩窄性心包炎患者的治疗。其中结核性心包炎 5 4例 (5 6 .84 % ) ,慢性炎症 2 0例 (2 0 .0 5 % ) ,非特异性炎症 8例 (8.4 2 % ) ,化脓性心包炎 13例(13.6 8% ) ,均行手术治疗。结果 :手术死亡 5例 ,死亡率 5 .2 6 %。术后 2年有 3例死于心衰。症状好转 11例 ,症状完全或基本消失 76例。结论 :术前心功能 ,病史长短 ,心包切除范围 ,完善的围术期处理是取得良好疗效的关键     

螺旋CT对缩窄性心包炎诊断价值研究

目的 :分析缩窄性心包炎螺旋CT表现特点 ,评价螺旋CT诊断价值。方法 :对 31例手术病理证实的缩窄性心包炎患者进行螺旋CT检查 ,分析其CT表现特点并和手术发现对比。结果 :CT诊断正确率为 96 8%(30 /31)。 30例发现心包增厚 ,最大厚度为 3～ 2 4mm (6± 2 6mm) ,和术中心包厚度测量一致性较高 (P <0 0 5 )。CT显示心包钙化 17例 ,漏诊 3例。心室腔缩小、变形 15例 ,室间隔扭曲 4例。心包钙化组血流动力学异常征象出现率显著高于非钙化组 (P <0 0 5 )。结论 :螺旋CT能准确显示缩窄性心包炎的各种病理改变 ,是诊断缩窄性心包炎的可靠手段之一。     

应用组织追踪技术研究缩窄性心包炎

目的 探讨缩窄性心包炎（constrictive pericarditis，CP）患者组织追踪成像的特征及诊断价值。 方法 缩窄性心包炎患者26例，对照组30例，同步显示中段右室壁、室间隔（I）和左室侧壁（L）组织追踪曲线图tissue（tracking），测量最大组织位移量（displacement）。 结果 CP患者右室壁及左室侧壁位移低于对照组，P〈0．05；室间隔位移低于对照组，但P〉0．05。 结论 CP患者组织追踪曲线图特征性明显，有重要的诊断价值。     

An Unusual Cause of Severe Dyspnea: Diastolic Dysfunction Due to Calcific Constrictive Pericarditis

Background: Constrictive pericarditis is a rare cause of dyspnea. This disease shares many signs and symptoms with other causes of cardiac failure as well as gastrointestinal and renal diseases, making it difficult to diagnose. Case Report: We present a case of a 73-year-old woman who presented to our Emergency Department (ED) in respiratory failure after a recent history of worsening dyspnea. Constrictive pericarditis was strongly suspected on bedside ultrasonography. Computed tomography scan showed extensive pericardial calcifications and large pleural effusions, supporting the diagnoses. The patient was admitted for treatment and evaluation of constrictive pericarditis, but died of complications during cardiac catheterization. Conclusions: The etiology and physiology of constrictive pericarditis are reviewed and an ultrasound-centered approach to undifferentiated dyspnea in the ED is discussed.     

Acute Pericarditis: Best Practices for Nurse Practitioners

Acute pericarditis (AP) is inflammation of the outermost layer of the heart due to infectious or noninfectious etiologies that result in increased pericardial vascular permeability, cardiac motion restriction, and augmented electrophysiology. It is a clinical diagnosis based on the presence of at least 2 of 4 clinical manifestations: pleuritic chest pain, pericardial friction rub, widespread ST elevation or PR depression, and new or worsening pericardial effusion. Nurse practitioners in primary and acute care settings need to recognize the hallmark finding of new global ST elevation or PR depression on electrocardiogram, appropriately prescribe nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs while minimizing side effects, and coordinate interdisciplinary care to reduce morbidity and mortality of AP in adult and older adult populations.     

Descending Necrotizing Mediastinitis With Diffuse ST Elevation Mimicking Pericarditis: a Case Report

Background

Descending necrotizing mediastinitis (DNM) is a potentially fatal disease that requires aggressive treatment, including mediastinal exploration. The inflammation associated with DNM may involve the heart, which produces acute changes in the electrocardiogram (ECG). As a result, the ECG may mimic pericarditis, causing some diagnostic confusion.

Objectives

The objectives of this case report are to describe a case of DNM presenting electrocardiographically with pericarditis, and to discuss how to differentiate between benign viral pericarditis and DNM, and the management of these two diseases.

Case Report

We present the case of a previously healthy 50-year-old man who presented to the Emergency Department for chest pain and presumed pericarditis. The patient presented with ST elevation on multiple leads on ECG, tenderness in the neck, widened mediastinum on the chest radiograph, and nonspecific laboratory test results. Echocardiography revealed normal ventricle function and the presence of mild pericardial effusion. The emergency physician performed contrast-enhanced neck computed tomography (CT) to rule out deep-neck infection. The CT scan showed marginal rim-enhancing abscesses in the retropharyngeal, bilateral submandibular, and anterior visceral spaces with extension into the thoracic cavity. Contrast-enhanced chest CT was performed consecutively. The final diagnosis was deep-neck infection with DNM. The patient underwent mediastinoscopy-assisted drainage and neck fasciotomy twice and received 7 weeks of therapy with intravenous meropenem.

Conclusion

The present case highlights the importance of considering a mediastinal cause for acute ECG changes.     

二维多普勒超声诊断慢性缩窄性心包炎的价值

本文应用二维多普勒超声心动图观察了慢性缩窄性心包炎３４例声像图特征。结果显示：患者心包不规则增厚，心脏活动受限，左、右心房增大，左心室正常或缩小，下腔静脉和肝静脉扩张。左房与左室后壁夹角为１３２±１０°，ＤＡ一ＤＶ为３１．８０±９．８０ｍｍ，ＤＶ／ＤＡ为０．６８±０．０５，主动脉瓣口血流频谱呈“奇脉”现象。本文认为二维多普勒超声心动图对诊断慢性缩窄性心包炎有重要价值。     

Acute Pericarditis Resulting From an Endocardial Active Fixation Screw-In Atrial Lead

We examined the occurrence of acute pericarditis after pacemaker implantation in 123 consecutive patients (61 males, 62 females, ages 17–87 years) in whom a newer atrial active fixation bipolar lead was inserted endocardially in the right atrium for dual chamber pacing. The atrial leads were positioned to obtain the best possible pacing and sensing thresholds, after an initial attempt was made for insertion into the right atrial appendage or medially into the right atrial septum. Six patients (4.9%) developed acute symptomatic pericarditis with effusion within 24 hours of implantation. Of these six patients, four had leads screwed into the lateral waH. and the other two had leads placed in the anterolateral wall. The lead implantation parameters between patients with pericarditis and those without did not show any significant difference in the atrial P wave amplitude (2.3 ± 0.4 vs 2.9 ± 0.9 mV), pacing threshold (1.1 ± 0.2 vs 1.1 ± 0.4 V), or resistance (524 ± 112 vs 480 ± 94 ohms). All symptomatic patients were treated with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs with symptoms resolving in 1–2 weeks. We condude that: (1) a significant number of patients (4.9%) developed acute symptomatic pericarditis after insertion of this type of atrial fixation lead: (2) because of the lead design, the implantation parameters coud not be taken to predict the occurrence of pericarditis: and (3) caution should be taken for the insertion of this lead into the thin atrial wall.     

高频超声对缩窄性心包炎的心包显像研究

目的:为了更精确地显示心包的病变,作者设计用高频率超声显示心尖部心包的结构。方法:随机选择缩窄性心包炎9例,均经外科心包剥离术证实。30例正常对照组。用高频率超声探查心尖部和靠近心尖部的右心室前壁心包厚度。使用的仪器是Vivid-5和Sequoia C256,线阵探头频率7-10 MHz。结果:高频率超声显示正常对照组心尖部心包的厚度为0.68-0.95 mm;(0.75±0.10)mm,缩窄性心包炎组为2.00-5.50 mm,(3.53±1.25)mm,缩窄性心包炎组心包的厚度与正常对照组的差异有非常显著的统计学意义(P<0.001)。结论:高频率超声能精确地显示心尖部和右心室前壁区心包的厚度,能将心包组织与心包外脂肪层和/或少量的心包积液明确地区分开来。此技术利用高频率超声的良好空间和时间分辨率弥补了超声心动图探查心包厚度的技术缺陷,心尖部和右心室前壁区心包的厚度超过2.0 mm可能是缩窄性心包炎最重要的诊断指标。     

缩窄性心包炎肝静脉血流多普勒频谱变化特征

目的探讨缩窄性心包炎肝静脉血流多普勒频谱变化特征.方法应用彩色多普勒超声心动图检测了30例缩窄性心包炎患者肝静脉血流多普勒频谱变化,并与31例正常人及20例肺动脉高压者对比观察.结果缩窄性心包炎组肝静脉血流多普勒频谱 s波较正常组及肺动脉高压组明显降低;d波与正常组无明显差异,但较肺动脉高压组明显增高;s/d比值较两组显著减低,若以该比值<1作为判断缩窄性心包炎的标准,敏感性为78%,特异性达95%.结论肝静脉血流多普勒频谱变化可作为评价缩窄性心包炎的一种方法.     

aVR导联心电特征在急性心包炎诊断中的临床价值

[目的]探讨aVR导联在诊断急性心包炎中的临床价值.[方法]选择2007年7月至2011年7月本院临床确诊的急性心包炎患者41例,结合临床对心电图检查结果进行分析.[结果]41例急性心包炎患者中,35例(85.37%)有PR段偏移:aVR导联PR段抬高,余多数导联PR段压低.[结论]急性心包炎时aVR导联R段偏移或抬高...     

Individualized therapy for pericarditis

The treatment of pericarditis remains largely empirical owing to a relative lack of randomized, controlled trials; nevertheless, a number of observational studies and the first randomized trials are moving the management of pericardial diseases on the road to evidence-based medicine. Moreover, emerging data suggest that treatment can be tailored to the specific patient and, although the optimal length of treatment is not clearly established, some recommendations can be formulated to guide management and follow-up. Aspirin or a NSAID at medium-to-high dosages are the mainstay of treatment (e.g., aspirin 2–4 g/day, ibuprofen 1200–1800 mg/day, indomethacin 75–150 mg/day). Corticosteroid use should be restricted, and low-to-medium doses (i.e., prednisone 0.2–0.5 mg/kg/day) should be preferred. Colchicine 0.5–1.2 mg/day is effective for reducing recurrences.     

缩窄性心包炎的三种影像诊断比较分析

【目的】评估三种影像学检查方法对诊断缩窄性心包炎的诊断价值。【方法】对比分析59例X线胸片、CT、B超检查缩窄性心包炎的心脏增大、房室增大、心包增厚、心包钙化、肺淤血、心包积液、上下腔静脉增宽、房室功能受限、室间隔变形和矛盾运动方面的差异,其中40例与手术结果进行了比较。【结果】心脏增大、心包增厚、心包钙化、心包积液的CT检查结果优于X线胸片和B超;观察肺淤血以X线胸片最佳;而心脏房室增大、房室功能受限、室间隔变形和矛盾运动的观察B超具有明显优势;上下腔静脉增宽B超也稍优于CT。与手术结果比较：CT阳性率为95．0％,B超阳性率为85．0％,X线胸片阳性率为67．5％。【结论】缩窄性心包炎的影像诊断应以CT为主,如辅以B超和X线检查,则诊断准确率可以到98．31％。     

Cardiac MRI in Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Associated Pericarditis

Checkpoint inhibitors are novel and promising anticancer agents. However, acute pericarditis is the second most common chemotherapy‐associated cardiotoxicity and associated with high mortality up to 21%. Cardiac MRI offers a one‐stop‐shop cardiac analysis to precisely detect chemotherapy‐associated cardiotoxicity without nephrotoxic contrast dye and ionizing radiation.     

Evaluation and management of pericarditis

Pericarditis may be caused by infectious or noninfectious noxa. Most cases are labeled as ‘idiopathic’ because the traditional diagnostic approach often fails to identify the etiology. Most important causes are presumed to be viruses in countries with a low prevalence of tuberculosis and tuberculosis in developing countries. Noninfectious pericarditis mainly includes autoimmune systemic diseases, post-pericardiotomy syndromes and neoplastic pericardial disease. Treatment should be targeted to the cause, but remains empirical with NSAIDs and the possible adjunct of colchicine in idiopathic cases. Corticosteroids use should be limited to patients with NSAID contraindications/intolerance or failure, and rarely for specific conditions (i.e., pregnancy and systemic autoimmune diseases). Recurrences are the most common complication, but the overall prognosis is related to the etiology, usually benign in idiopathic pericarditis.