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[Acute pericarditis, complicated by pericardial effusion in a pediatric patient: case report]
Daniel Palanca Arias1, Elena G Corella Aznar2, Ariadna Ayerza Casas3
1Hospital Infantil Miguel Servet, Zaragoza, Unidad de Cardiología Pediátrica, Unidad de Cuidados Intensivos Pediátricos. danielpalanca@hotmail.com.
Insights
Acute pericarditis, often caused by benign factors, presents with chest pain and fever. This case highlights a favorable outcome in a child managed for pericarditis following atrial septal defect surgery.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Internal Medicine
- Pediatrics
Background:
- Acute pericarditis is the most common pericardial disease, affecting 0.1% of hospital admissions and 5% of emergency chest pain cases.
- Causes vary globally, with idiopathic and infectious origins prevalent in developed nations, while tuberculosis dominates in developing countries.
- Typical symptoms include chest pain and fever; management is often outpatient unless high-risk features are present.
Observation:
- A 7-year-old boy developed pericarditis nine months after surgical closure of an atrial septal defect.
- The patient presented with characteristic symptoms of pericarditis.
Findings:
- The pericarditis diagnosis occurred post-atrial septal defect repair.
- The condition showed a favorable clinical evolution.
Implications:
- This case underscores the possibility of late-onset pericarditis following cardiac surgery.
- Outpatient management is feasible for uncomplicated pericarditis, even in pediatric cases with a history of cardiac surgery.
- Early recognition and management of pericarditis are crucial for preventing complications like cardiac tamponade.
Abstract:
Acute pericarditis is the most common disease of the pericardium encountered in clinical practice. It is diagnosed in 0.1% of all admissions and 5% of emergency room admissions for chest pain. In developed countries, it is usually due to a benign cause. Idiopathic and infectious pericarditis are more common than secondary to surgical pericardiotomy or neoplastic causes, whereas tuberculosis is the dominant cause in developing countries. The most common symptoms of pericarditis are characteristic chest pain and fever. Since pericarditis presents a benign outcome because of self-limiting and good response to conventional anti-inflammatory therapy, it can be safely managed on outpatient basis unless a specific cause is suspected or the patient has high-risk features to avoid complications such as pericardial effusion, cardiac tamponade or recurrent pericarditis. We report a case of pericarditis, diagnosed 9 months after surgical closure of an atrial septal defect, in a 7-year-old boy with favorable evolution.
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