We discussed a case about a middle aged woman with subacute-chronic SOB, fatigue, pleuritic CP, and productive cough, found to have a large pericardial effusion with features of cardiac tamponade. We learned about various features of cardiac tamponade:
- Exam: Beck’s triad, pulsus paradoxus
- EKG: low voltage QRS, tachycardia, electrical alternans
- TTE / POCUS
- Cardiac chamber collapse
- Dilated IVC
- Reciprocal respiratory variations in ventricular volumes
- Pericardial vs pleural effusion on POCUS peristernal long axis (PLAX)
- Pericardial: fluid ANTERIOR to the descending aorta
- Pleural: fluid POSTERIOR to the descending aorta
