Complete Congenital Absence of the Left Pericardium in Elderly Patient: A Case Report

Abstract

Sintayehu Mekonnen,1,2 Hawi Farris,3 Daniel Azmeraw1 1Department of Internal Medicine, All Africa Leprosy, Tuberculosis and Rehabilitation Training Center, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; 2Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Addis Ababa University College of Health Science, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; 3Department of Radiology, Addis Ababa University College of Health Science, Addis Ababa, EthiopiaCorrespondence: Sintayehu Mekonnen, Email [email protected]: Congenital pericardial absence is an uncommon heart condition that is usually undiagnosed due to a lack of symptoms and awareness. In this case study, we present a 72-year-old patient who initially presented for medical evaluation due to unexplained weight loss, a displaced cardiac apex, and poor echocardiographic windows. An extracardiac tumor was suspected at first, but it was later determined that the patient had a congenital complete absence of the left pericardium. This case illustrates the possibility for benign pathology to present abnormally and details the clinical features, imaging findings, and management of congenital absence of the pericardium.Keywords: pericardium, congenital defect, echocardiography

Keywords

• pericardium
• congenital defect
• echocardiography