Why the study?
Accurate estimation of pericardial fluid volume could improve communication between radiologists and the multidisciplinary team, but the correlation between CT-measured volume and thickness needed evaluation.
Does pericardial effusion thickness correlate with effusion volume measured by non-ECG gated CT in patients with pericardial effusion?
Does pericardial effusion thickness correlate with effusion volume measured by non-ECG gated CT in patients with pericardial effusion?
The sum of anterior and posterior pericardial effusion thicknesses on axial non-ECG gated CT provides a rapid and reliable estimation of total effusion volume.
Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
Supports preliminary CT thickness-based volume estimation in pericardial effusion; leaves open validation in larger prospective cohorts.
Background: An accurate estimation of pericardial fluid volume could improve communication between radiologists and the multidisciplinary team. Objective: To find the correlation between the volume and thickness of pericardial effusion measured by CT scan. Materials and Methods: The chest CT scans of 38 patients with pericardial effusion were measured for volume using manual segmentation and for thickness on axial and 3-chamber planes from the anterior and posterior aspects. The correlation between volume and thickness was evaluated using Pearson’s correlation coefficient (r). The reliability of the measurements was tested using intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland-Altman analysis. Results: There was a fair to moderately strong correlation between the volume and thickness of pericardial effusion (r= 0.435-0.625, p= <0.01). An ICC of 0.452-0.703 indicated moderate inter-observer agreement. The best measurement is the sum of the anterior and posterior thicknesses on the axial plane (ICC of 0.703) that correlates well with the volume (r= 0.624). A linear regression equation demonstrating the relationship between pericardial effusion thickness and the effusion volume was computed as; Volume (mL) = 73 + 71*(the sum of anterior and posterior thicknesses on axial view in cm). The equation was applied: a value of approximately 3 cm = small, 6 cm = moderate, and 9 cm = large pericardial effusion. Conclusion: There is a moderate correlation between the sum of the anterior and posterior pericardial thicknesses and the pericardial volume. Our preliminary formula enables a rapid estimation of the effusion volume. Further validation and refinement of the formula in a larger, prospective study is needed.
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Patharateeranart et al. (2023) studied this question.
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