If the medical profession speaks of pericardial tamponade, the circumstance has occurred that so much fluid has accumulated in the pericardium that there is an impairment of heart function. The heart muscle is constricted from the outside. Such fluid accumulation can be caused by inflammation; the fluid may be clear, but it may also contain … Pericardial Tamponade: Causes, Symptoms & Treatment
Definition A complete tear in the wall of the aorta is called an aortic rupture. An aortic rupture is extremely rare and must be surgically treated as soon as possible, otherwise it is absolutely fatal. Even a small tear in the aorta leads to massive bleeding into the body within a very short time. A … Aortic rupture
Associated symptoms The main symptom of an acute aortic rupture is sudden, extreme pain in the chest and upper abdomen. Patients describe the pain as a “stabbing pain of destruction” that can radiate into the back. The tear in the aorta causes massive internal blood loss, which can lead to circulatory instability and even collapse. … Associated symptoms | Aortic rupture
Chances of survival An aortic rupture is a fatal event for the patient and accordingly the chances of survival are very low. The mortality rate (death rate) outside the hospital is 90%. In case of an acute rupture of the aorta, only about 10-15% of patients reach the hospital alive. Despite immediate emergency measures and … Chances of survival | Aortic rupture
An accumulation of water in the pericardium – also called pericardial effusion – refers to the presence of fluid between the two connective tissue membranes surrounding the heart (pericardial cavity). This accumulation of water can occur both acutely and chronically. In a healthy person, there is about 20ml of fluid in the pericardium, which is … Water in the pericardium – Dangerous?
Symptoms If only small amounts of water are present in the pericardium, few to no symptoms occur. However, if there is a lot of fluid, a variety of symptoms occur. These are caused by the fact that the heart is spatially constricted in its pericardium and cannot really expand during contraction or pumping. As a … Symptoms | Water in the pericardium – Dangerous?
Diagnosis The method of choice for the diagnosis of pericardial effusion is ultrasound diagnostics (sonography), in which the water in the pericardium can be visualized. Computer tomography (CT) can also be used to visualize fluid between the two pericardium layers. After visual confirmation of water accumulation, fluid is usually taken from the pericardial cavity (puncture) … Diagnosis | Water in the pericardium – Dangerous?
Duration Among the most common causes of water accumulation in the pericardium are various infectious diseases, such as tuberculosis, diphtheria, Coxsackie viruses, HIV or herpes. However, frequently existing autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus erythematosus, can also cause pericardial effusion. Other triggers can be metabolic diseases (e.g. uremia), malignant tumors or metastases, traumas, … Duration | Water in the pericardium – Dangerous?
