Noninfectious constrictive pericarditis in a heart transplant recipient

Constrictive Pericarditis After Cardiac Transplantation: A Case Report and Literature Review

“…15 Similarly, other case reports feature post-operative courses that are almost uniformly associated with pericarditis or mediastinitis requiring surgical débridement. 16,17 This is in keeping with the hypothesis that post-operative constrictive pericarditis is a result of adhesion formation on adjacent injured serosal surfaces. 18 A report of 4 patients described the potential association of allograft rejection with the development of constriction.…”

Pericardial constriction after cardiac transplantation

“…13 Previous reports in which postoperative clinical data are available have demonstrated that approximately 50% of patients enjoy satisfactory, long-term, symptom-free survival. 9,10,[12][13][14][15][16] Our results confirm the potential for excellent longterm outcomes when the condition is diagnosed and treated early. When the diagnosis is delayed or recognized late, this condition is associated with malnutrition, coagulopathy, and liver and kidney insufficiency.…”

“…This uncertainty may have delayed the diagnosis in Patients 4 and 5 in the present series, and has been recognized previously. 15 …”

Constrictive pericarditis after lung transplantation: An under-recognized complication

“…Pathophysiologic characteristics of CP include dissociation of intrathoracic and intracardiac pressures during respiration, exaggerated ventricular interdependence, and impaired diastolic filling. 5 As demonstrated in these 4 patients, these cumulate into signs and symptoms of systemic and pulmonary venous congestion. [5][6][7][8][9] Most of the signs and symptoms are not specific of CP, and we must include restrictive cardiomyopathy, tricuspid valve disease, right ventricular failure, and cardiac tamponade in the differential diagnosis.…”