Intrapericardial tumbling bullet.
Foreign bodies of the pericardium are rare and they are associated most commonly with significant trauma. The diagnosis of a pericardial foreign body can be difficult. One must distinguish between foreign matter in the cardiac chamber or free-floating in the mediastinum. Serial chest X-rays and fluoroscopy were most helpful to us. Neither CT scan nor an echocardiogram were particularly helpful. To prevent pericarditis, either sterile or non-sterile, with potential for other significant complications, removal of a pericardial foreign body is always indicated.
Simstein
N L
NL
Department of Surgery, Forsyth Memorial Hospital, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA.
D000293:Adolescent; D005260:Female; D005547:Foreign Bodies / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000601:surgery; D005548:Foreign-Body Migration / Q000150:complications*; D006801:Humans; D010496:Pericardium; D014948:Wounds, Gunshot / Q000150:complications*