Purulent Pericarditis with Cardiac Tamponade Secondary to Candida Albicans after Total Parenteral Nutrition: A Case Report

Purulent pericarditis is characterized by a purulent pericardial fluid, which usually originates from the extension of a nearby bacterial infection site or by blood dissemination. Candida species is a rare cause of pericarditis; and if not treated, it is extremely fatal. In this report, we describe a 54-year-old man who had esophagojejunostomy due to gastric adenocancer 2 months before his admission into our emergency department with dyspnea, orthopnea, chest pain, and somnolence. Physical and echocardiographic examinations revealed massive fibrinous pericardial effusion, causing pericardial tamponade. We performed urgent pericardiocentesis. The culture of the purulent pericardial fluid illustrated Candida albicans. There was no gastropericardial fistula after endoscopic and computed tomographic evaluations of the gastrointestinal tract. After receiving 1 month of antimicrobial treatment, the patient recovered completely. During his follow-up, he remained asymptomatic and had no pericardial fluid for 6 months. Our case indicates the possibility of the occurrence of purulent pericarditis with tamponade, secondary to the dissemination of Candida albicans from total parenteral nutrition after gastric carcinoma surgery without gastropericardial fistulae or anastomosis leak.