Constrictive Pericarditis: An Analysis of 17 Cases

Abstract

Seventeen cases of constrictive pericarditis seen at University of Iowa Hospitals in the past six years have been analyzed. The importance of early diagnosis and prompt surgery cannot be overemphasized in this disease where mechanical factors play a major role and where the passage of time modifies the normal myocardium. Though tuberculosis has long been held as the most common known cause of constrictive pericarditis, its unequivocal association in our series, as in many others, is rare. Other infective agents, particularly viral, seem to play an important role. For a better understanding of the causative factors, better epidemiologic viral studies are necessary. With positive information from such studies, methods to prevent constrictive pericarditis may evolve.