Pericarditis
Pericarditis
It is defined as the inflammation of the sac like tissue called the pericardium which surround the heart. Pericarditis cause severe sharp chest pain which mimic the heart attack.
Symptoms
Signs and symptoms include:
- Cough
- Palpitations
- Abdominal swelling
- Legs swelling
- Low grade fever
- Breathing difficulty
Causes
The cause of pericarditis includes:
- Trauma to chest
- Systematic inflammatory disorder
- Heart attack
- Heart surgery
- Other disease includes kidney failure and certain types of cancers.
Diagnosis
After taking medical history and conducting a physical examination your doctor might recommend a following tests to confirm the diagnosis:
- Blood test to check the any infection and serum protein
- MRI to see the heart actual size
- ECG to check the electrical activity of heart
- Chest x-ray to see the normal size and shape of heart
Treatment
Usually, mild pericarditis resolves on its own and does not required any medications but severe condition required following medicines:
- Pain killers like aspirin and ibuprofen
- Corticosteroids to stop the inflammation
- Colchicine to reduce inflammations
- Surgical process includes pericardiocentesis and pericardiotomy.