To study the effectiveness of inserting central venous catheter was inserted into pericardial cavity for the drainage and treatment of lung cancer hydropericardium.
If there's a severe pericardial effusion, a pericardiocentesis can be done by inserting a needle into the pericardial cavity and draining the excess fluid.
People who develop pericarditis are also at risk of developing a pericardial effusion - that's when the inflammation causes fluid to accumulate around the heart.
When the pericardium is involved, it often leads to pericarditis —inflammation of the pericardium— and pericardial effusion, an accumulation of fluid in the pericardial cavity.
The high levels of urea irritate the serous pericardium, making it secrete a thick pericardial fluid that's full of fibrin strands and white blood cells.
Larger pericardial effusions, those over 100ml of fluid, can cause diminished heart sounds, and can even diminish cardiac output leading to shortness of breath, low blood pressure, and lightheadedness.
On an echocardiogram, a pericardial effusion makes the heart look like it's dancing within the pericardium, whereas chronic pericarditis shows the stiff serous pericardium restricting the heart's movement.
The inner layer of the pouch is the serous pericardium that includes the pericardial cavity, and is filled with a small amount of fluid that lets the heart slip around as it beats.
On an X-ray of a heart with a large pericardial effusion, you can see a silhouette that pools to the bottom of the heart and gives a classic " water bottle" sign.
The cells of the serous pericardium secrete and reabsorb the fluid, so usually there's no more than 50 milliliters of fluid in the pericardial cavity at one time - that's about as much as a shot glass.