Diagnosing and Treating Pericarditis and Myocarditis in the Emergency Department

Points and Pearls Excerpt

• The pathologies of pericarditis and myocarditis can exist on a continuum, and there is significant overlap in etiologies and presentations. Inflammatory cardiomyopathy is myocarditis in association with cardiac dysfunction.⁴ Fulminant myocarditis is sudden and severe myocarditis resulting in myocyte necrosis, edema, and cardiogenic shock.⁶
• The pericardium normally contains 15-50 mL of fluid; 100 mL of fluid has potential to cause tamponade physiology.
• Pericarditis can be classified into 4 clinical types: acute, incessant, recurrent, and chronic.
• Table 2 outlines the diagnostic criteria for determining pericarditis type.