Multimodality Cardiovascular Imaging in Patients with Pericardial Diseases. Practical Recommendations

Abstract

Pericardial pathology has wide distribution in population and is observed in various therapeutic areas, including primary care, intensive care and resuscitation, as well as such subspecialties as rheumatology, infectious diseases, oncology and namely cardiology. It may significantly contribute to morbidity and mortality growth. Therefore, diagnosis and management of patients with pericardial pathology may be challenging, including such nosology as a “mixed” constrictive pericarditis, exudative-constrictive pericarditis or localized postoperative tamponade. Clinical evaluation of such conditions may be rather complicated. That is why the use of multimodality imaging including echocardiography, heart MRI and MSCT grows continuously in the diagnosis and treatment in such patients. The aim of this document is to provide expert evaluation for comprehensive and appropriate use of multimodality imaging in the diagnosis and management of patients with pericardial diseases. This document is based on the American Society of Echocardiography Clinical Recommendations for Multimodality Cardiovascular Imaging of Patients with Pericardial Disease endorsed by the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance and Society of Cardiovascular Computed Tomography (2013) adopted for local specificities.

Keywords

• pericardial disease
• multimodality imaging
• echocardiography
• cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging
• cardiovascular computed tomography