Pericardial fat necrosis: a review and update

A previously healthy middle-aged person presents with excruciating left-sided chest pain of 6 hours' duration. The pain has come on abruptly, without warning, and is located in the lower part of the chest anteriorly. It radiates to the neck and left shoulder and worsens on deep inspiration. The patient appears seriously ill, with tachypnea, tachycardia, and diaphoresis. Otherwise, the physical examination is unremarkable. The electrocardiogram shows sinus tachycardia. Results of conventional blood studies and the chest radiograph are within normal limits. Three days later, a follow-up chest radiograph shows a 3.5 x 4-cm mass adjacent to the left side of the heart near the diaphragm.