Tamponade: Hemodynamic and Echocardiographic Diagnosis

Cardiac tamponade is a medical emergency that can be readily reversed with timely recognition and appropriate intervention. The clinical diagnosis of cardiac tamponade requires synthesis of a constellation of otherwise nonspecific features based on an understanding of the underlying pathophysiological characteristics. Although echocardiographic examination is a central component of diagnosis, alone it is insufficient to establish the physiological diagnosis of hemodynamically significant cardiac tamponade. The hemodynamic diagnosis of cardiac tamponade requires clinical evidence of low cardiac output and stroke volume in the setting of elevated cardiac filling pressures, with evidence of increased sympathetic tone (eg, tachycardia, peripheral vasoconstriction), and exclusion of other causes of shock as the primary problem (particularly cardiogenic shock). The hemodynamic features of tamponade are revealed by considering the effects of pericardial constraint. Pulsus paradoxus and loss of the normal "y" descent of a jugular venous pressure waveform may be appreciated on clinical examination. When a pulmonary artery catheter is placed, equalization of diastolic pressures across all chambers is observed. Echocardiographic examination confirms the size, location, and other characteristics of the causal pericardial collection. Several echocardiographic features support the hemodynamic diagnosis of tamponade, including early diastolic collapse of the right ventricle, late diastolic collapse of the right atrium, respiratory variation in mitral valve inflow (akin to pulsus paradoxus), and decreased early filling (E wave) of mitral valve inflow (related to loss of the y descent). Echocardiographic examination then supports decisions about the early treatment and drainage of the tamponading effusion.

Role of Echocardiography in the Evaluation of Left Ventricular Assist Devices: the Importance of Emerging Technologies

The role of left ventricular assist devices (LVAD) in patients with end-stage heart failure is well known, both as a temporary treatment before transplantation and as destination therapy, in a scenario of a relative shortage of donors to satisfy the increasing requests for transplantation. The increased population of LVAD patients needs careful imaging assessment before, during, and after LVAD implantation; echocardiography is the best tool for their evaluation and is considered the diagnostic technique of choice for the assessment before, during, and after device implantation. Although the conventional echocardiographic assessment is quite effective in evaluating the main critical issues, the role of new technologies like three-dimensional echocardiography and myocardial deformation measurements is still not properly clarified. In this review, we aim to provide an overview of the main elements that should be considered in the assessment of these patients, underlining the role that could be played by new techniques to improve the diagnostic and prognostic effectiveness of echocardiography in this setting.

The Biplane Modified Simpson's Method Accurately Estimates Pericardial Effusion Volume: A Comparison with Pericardiocentesis

BACKGROUND

Pericardial effusion (PE) volume is often assessed semiqualitatively by echocardiography and categorized into minimal, small, moderate, or large. Several methods of echocardiographic quantification have been proposed, but their application is limited either by complexity or inaccuracy. We evaluated the accuracy of PE volume quantification by two-dimensional transthoracic echocardiogram (2DTTE) and commercially available volume quantification software in patients undergoing pericardiocentesis.

METHODS

In a retrospective case series, immediate preprocedure echocardiograms of 33 patients for pericardiocentesis were analyzed. 2DTTE using the Simpson's method was adopted for volume measurement in the apical two- and four-chamber views. Pericardial fluid volume was calculated by taking the difference between volumes obtained by tracing the epicardial border of the heart and the pericardium. Postprocedure echocardiograms were performed to verify adequate pericardiocentesis.

RESULTS

The mean pericardiocentesis fluid volume was 725.1 ± 299.5 mL (range, 250-1420 mL). The average volume estimated echocardiographically by the Simpson's method was 657.5 ± 276.9 mL (range, 205.7-1193.2 mL). There was strong direct linear correlation between echocardiographic and pericardiocentesis-derived volumes (P < 0.001, r = +0.823). Echocardiography underestimated PE volume by a mean of 9.3%.

CONCLUSION

Two-dimensional transthoracic echocardiography using biplane Simpson's method of disks can simply and accurately estimate PE volume.

Role of live/real time three-dimensional transthoracic echocardiography in pericardial disease

Despite the high sensitivity of two-dimensional transthoracic echocardiography (2DTTE) in diagnosing pericardial effusion, it has limitations in assessing its size and extent and in evaluating other pericardial pathologies. There are only limited reports so far, but live/real time three-dimensional transthoracic Echocardiography (3DTTE) has shown promise and potential advantages over 2DTTE in certain clinical situations. With its ability to crop and view cardiac structures from any desired angulation it offers incremental value in assessing the anatomy of the pericardium including echo densities within the effusion, fibrinous bands, and loculated effusions. It offers significant supplemental information over 2DTTE in clinical scenarios like post cardiac surgery follow up of hemopericardium, quantification of the effusion, evaluation of pericardial masses including granuloma, differentiating pericardial effusion from ascites and pleural effusion and in studying the extent of the disease in constrictive pericarditis. However, comprehensive studies are needed to further define its role in daily clinical practice.

Incremental value of live/real time three-dimensional echocardiography in the diagnosis and evaluation of pericardial cyst

Pericardial cysts are rare anomalies of the pericardium that are usually asymptomatic and followed by two-dimensional (2D) echocardiography. Here we report a large pericardial cyst that could not be measured accurately by 2D echocardiography but three-dimensional (3D) echocardiography enabled measurements of the cyst that correlated well with computed tomography measurements. In addition, 3D echocardiography demonstrated the mono-trabeculated nature of the cyst further suggesting the incremental value of 3D echocardiography in the evaluation of pericardial cysts. The cyst was subsequently resected surgically.

Pericarditis: pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management

Pericarditis, the most common disease of the pericardium, may be isolated or a manifestation of a systemic disease. The etiology of pericarditis is varied and includes infectious (especially viral and tuberculosis) and noninfectious causes (autoimmune and autoinflammatory diseases, pericardial injury syndromes, and cancer [especially lung cancer, breast cancer, and lymphomas]). Most cases remain idiopathic with a conventional diagnostic evaluation. A targeted etiologic search should be directed to the most common cause on the basis of the patient's clinical background, epidemiologic issues, specific presentations, and high-risk features associated with specific etiologies or complications (fever higher than 38°C, subacute onset, large pericardial effusion, cardiac tamponade, lack of response to NSAIDs). The management of pericardial diseases is largely empiric because of the relative lack of randomized trials. NSAIDs are the mainstay of empiric anti-inflammatory therapy, with the possible addition of colchicine to prevent recurrences.