title: Echo-guided pericardiocentesis in patients with clinically significant pericardial effusion. Outcomes over a 10-year period.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The purpose of the present study is to evaluate current echocardiographically (echo)-guided pericardiocentesis practice with regard to procedural success, complication rate, etiological causes, and outcomes of patients with clinically significant pericardial effusion.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients who underwent echo-guided pericardiocentesis between January 2004 and February 2014 were identified using an institutional code for the procedure. Other complementary data were obtained by interviewing patients or their relatives (directly or by telephone) and by searching the social security death index.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 301 patients were identified. The pericardium was approached via the subcostal (85 %) or apical (15 %) route under echo guidance in all procedures. The success rate was 97 %, with an intervention-requiring complication rate of 1.3 %. No patient died from complications. The most common etiology was malignancy (n = 84, 28 %). Patients were followed-up for a median of 35 months. Median survival for patients with malignant effusion was 5.9 months compared with 54 months for those with nonmalignant effusion.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Echo-guided pericardiocentesis has a high success and low complication rate in current practice. Among etiologies, malignancy remains the most common cause of clinically significant pericardial effusion and is associated with a poor prognosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Siyami Ersek Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery Training and Research Hospital, Tibbiye cad. No:13, Istanbul, Turkey, sukruakyuz@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Akyuz
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zengin
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Arugaslan
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yazici
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Onuk
authors.forename: U S
authors.initials: US
authors.lastname: Ceylan
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gungor
authors.forename: U
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Gurkan
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kemaloglu Oz
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kasikcioglu
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Cam
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010490:Pericardial Effusion / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000401:mortality* / Q000628:therapy*; D020519:Pericardiocentesis / Q000401:mortality*; D015995:Prevalence; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014421:Turkey / Q000453:epidemiology; D018084:Ultrasonography, Interventional / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D055815:Young Adult