Highlights & Basics
- Cardiac tamponade is a medical emergency.
- May be a complication of any disorder that results in pericardial effusion. In people from endemic regions, tuberculosis pericarditis remains a prominent cause of pericardial effusion and tamponade.
- Presenting symptoms range from mild dyspnea and atypical chest pain to cardiogenic shock. Clinical signs include: tachycardia, hypotension, distant heart sounds, elevated jugular venous pressure, and a pulsus paradoxus (>10 mmHg variation in systolic blood pressure with inspiration).
- Echocardiography is essential for evaluation.
- Rapidly fatal if not promptly drained through needle pericardiocentesis or surgical drainage of the pericardium.
Quick Reference
History & Exam
Key Factors
Other Factors
Diagnostics Tests
Treatment Options
Definition
Epidemiology
Etiology
Pathophysiology
Citations
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Adler Y, Charron P, Imazio M, et al. 2015 ESC Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of pericardial diseases. Eur Heart J. 2015 Nov 7;36(42):2921-64.[Abstract][Full Text]
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