title: Percutaneous balloon pericardiotomy for management of cardiac tamponade in a patient with lung cancer and large pericardial effusion.
abstract: We describe the case of a 32-year-old man with lung cancer involving the pericardium on which we performed pericardiotomy, using a balloon dilating catheter, to create a non-surgical pericardial window. For the percutaneous creation of pericardial window we advanced into the pericardium by subxiphoid approach a 0.035 inch guide wire through a 7f. pig-tail catheter. Subsequently a 22 mm diameter, 4 cm long balloon dilating catheter was advanced to the parietal pericardium and inflated for about 60 seconds until a tear in the pericardium was formed. We believe that percutaneous balloon pericardiotomy is helpful in the management of large pericardial effusions particularly in patients with malignancies and poor condition.
authors.affiliation: Cardiac Catherization Laboratory, General State Hospital, Piraeus St. Panteleimon, Greece.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Kouvaras
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Polydorou
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Hatziantoniou
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D021721:Balloon Occlusion; D002305:Cardiac Tamponade / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D002404:Catheterization; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D006801:Humans; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000150:complications*; D008297:Male; D010490:Pericardial Effusion / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D010491:Pericardial Window Techniques; D010492:Pericardiectomy / Q000379:methods*