A Retrospective Study on Constrictive Pericarditis Patients in a Tertiary Care Hospital

Constrictive pericarditis is a syndrome characterised by thick, brotic and rigid pericardium caused by a wide spectrum of cardiac and non-cardiac conditions resulting in impaired diastolic lling with a high prevelance of morbidity and mortality. We sought to determine the etiology, age distribution, gender prediliction, symptomatology, surgical outcome and complications of constrictive pericarditis in our institute. A total of 11 patients who underwent pericardiectomy for constrictive pericarditis over a 3year period were studied retrospectively. The commonest etiology was idiopathic in 45.4% patients followed by tuberculosis in 27.3%. Age distribution was between 17 years and 64 years. Males ( 81.2 %) were more affected than females. The Surgical approach was through left anterolateral thoracotomy in 4 patients and through median sternotomy in 7 patients. Cardiopulmonary bypass was used in 1 patient. Perioperative mortality was 18.2 % causes being severe low cardiac output syndrome and bleeding. One year survival rate was 72.7%.