Etio-pathological Profile of Chronic Pericarditis.

INTRODUCTION : A wide variety of conditions may result in pericardial effusion. The etiologic spectrum in different series largely depends on the source of the patients, the characteristics of the centre, and on the frequency distribution of the different etiologies in each geographic area. In many cases, pericardial effusion is associated with a previous known condition or underlying cardiac diseases, which are finally proven to be the cause of the pericardial effusion. In patients with no apparent cause of pericardial effusion, the presence of inflammatory signs are predictive of acute (idiopathic) pericarditis; on the other hand, sever effusion with absence of tamponade is predictive of chronic idiopathic pericardial effusion. Tamponade without inflammatory signs is suspicious for neoplastic pericardial effusion. The prognosis of pericardial effusion is related to the underlying disease, being especially poor in patients with malignancy. AIM : To find out the etio-pathological and clinical profile of patients with Chronic Pericarditis. OBJECTIVES : To analyze the etiological profile patients with chronic pericarditis. To describe the pathological findings in various chronic pericarditis. To elicit the clinical profile of chronic pericarditis. CONCLUSION In patients with chronic pericardial effusion specific etiology was found in 13 patients (49%). Out of them 6 patients (22%) had hypothyroidism; 4 patients (15%) had chronic renal failure; 1 patient (4%) had post Myocardial Infarction pericarditis; 1patient (4%) had chronic Rheumatic carditis and 1patient (4%) had tuberculous etiology. In CCP 5 patients (42%) had tuberculous etiology and the rest (58%) were idiopathic. In cardiac Tamponade 2 patients (18%) were found to have tuberculous infection and the remaining 9 patients (82%) were idiopathic. The most common cause in all the three groups of chronic pericarditis was idiopathic