Paradoxical hemodynamic collapse after subxiphoid pericardial window

A 56-year-old man with a history of coronary artery disease, 4 months of cough and shortness of breath, a new lung mass, and increasing hypoxemia presented to the operating room emergently for a subxiphoid pericardial window for cardiac tamponade. After 1200 mL of pericardial fluid was drained, the patient immediately went into acutely decompensated right heart failure as seen on a transesophageal echocardiogram. The patient had cardiovascular collapse refractory to high-dose vasopressors, necessitating emergent venous-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation for successful resuscitation.