title: Clinical features and long-term natural history of the postpericardiotomy syndrome.
abstract: We followed 34 consecutive patients with the postpericardiotomy syndrome for a median of 7 years. In each patient, the syndrome was documented by the occurrence of: (1) a pericardial type of pain or pericardial rub (or both); and (2) fever or an elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate. The postpericardiotomy syndrome occurred at a median postoperative time of 4 weeks (range, 2 to 52 weeks). The duration of the syndrome was highly variable (range, 2 to 100 days; median, 22 days) and depended primarily on treatment; the median duration of symptoms in 21 patients treated with salicylates alone was only 4 days. Of the 9 patients receiving anticoagulants alone and in whom this treatment was continued, none had clinical evidence of hemopericardium. On follow-up, 7 patients (21%) had an initial recurrence at an interval of 1 to 3 months; 5 of these patients had further recurrences at an interval of 3 to 30 months. This long-term study indicates that the postperiocardiotomy syndrome is a benign but often recurrent clinical entity, presumably related to viral and/or immunologic factors.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004452:Echocardiography; D004562:Electrocardiography; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011185:Postpericardiotomy Syndrome / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011241:Prednisone / Q000627:therapeutic use; D012008:Recurrence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012459:Salicylates / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D012459:Salicylates; D011241:Prednisone