Abstract
Pyo-pericardium is a collection of purulent fluid in the pericardial sac. It is a
rare finding seen in less than 1% of patients who develop acute pericarditis. The
condition, though uncommon, has a mortality risk of 100% in untreated patients and
40% in treated patients. Most of the reported cases in the literature describe the
occurrence of pyo-pericardium in IV drug users that's secondary to needle fragment
embolization to the pericardium diagnosed through an echocardiogram and CT scan with
no evidence of bacteremia. Unlike reported cases, we present a case of pyo-pericardium
in a 37-year-old woman with bacteremia from a wound infection on her leg secondary
to IV drug use. Needle embolization was ruled out in our case as no foreign object
was identified on echocardiography or CT scan. Prompt identification followed by aggressive
treatment with pericardial window and systemic antibiotics is crucial for decreasing
mortality in such high-risk patients.
Key Indexing Terms
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: September 16, 2022
Accepted:
September 7,
2022
Received:
January 29,
2022
Identification
Copyright
© 2022 Southern Society for Clinical Investigation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
