The heart is the main organ of the human body, the so-called motor. Its correct operation is very important. Everyone tries to avoid heart disease. The work of this body depends on many factors. There are situations when the cause of discomfort and pain is fluid in the pericardium.
Provoking factors
Inflammation can be the cause of inflammation in the pericardium. This reason doesn't happen very often. Its share of the disease is only 15%. Much more often, various viruses become the cause of accumulation of fluid in the pericardium (45%). Fluid may also accumulate due to a fungal or parasitic infection.
Pericarditis
This is a serious and dangerous heart disease that can become chronic and cause heart failure.
The pericardium is the outer shell of the heart that holds it in position and prevents it fromincrease in an overload situation. The pericardium consists of two membranes. Between them is a liquid. It performs the function of a lubricant, prevents the shells from rubbing against each other during an intense load on the heart.
The norm of fluid in the pericardial cavity is 20 ml. If the volume of liquid exceeds this figure, then we can talk about the development of some pathologies that should be considered in more detail.
The causes of pericarditis are insufficiently known to medicine. It is only known that an increase in the volume of fluid can provoke diseases such as scarlet fever, influenza, rheumatism, lupus, and various infections. The pathology can proceed against the background of pleurisy, beriberi, measles.
Views
Like any other disease, pericarditis should be distinguished:
- By clinical manifestation: fibrinous pericarditis (dry) and exudative (effusion).
- By the nature of the course: acute and chronic.
Pericarditis may be accompanied by an inflammatory process, resulting in the deposition of lime in the heart shirt. In this situation, the volume of liquid can reach one liter, which will cause fatal complications in the body.
Determine whether the fluid in the pericardium is normal or not, only a specialist can.
Disease types
The normal amount of fluid in the pericardium in adults is less than twenty milliliters, but often this volume increases. The following pathologies can serve as the reason for this:
- autoimmunediseases;
- injuries, in particular chest wounds;
- parasites, fungi, bacteria and various viruses;
- diabetes mellitus, Addison's disease, myxedema;
- tumors or metastases of the pericardium;
- idiopathic pericarditis, the causes of which are unknown to science to this day;
- lung disease, transmissible myocardial infarction, aortic aneurysm.
It is worth noting that the amount of fluid in the heart can greatly increase (exudative pericarditis), increase slightly with an increase in protein in it (fibrous pericarditis), decrease (dry pericarditis).
General symptoms
For each type of pericarditis, certain symptoms are characteristic, they are different. But there are primary signs of pericarditis that are common to all types of disease:
- Headache.
- General weakness.
- Weakness and muscle pain.
- Shortness of breath.
- Dry cough.
- Irregular heartbeat.
- Fever.
- Friction noises in the pericardial area.
Often the patient does not seek help from a specialist, as he confuses these symptoms with other less serious diseases. After taking antipyretic and analgesic drugs that do not bring the desired result, the patient goes to the doctor. Unfortunately, for many people at this moment, the pathology takes on a chronic form, the treatment of which is a rather long and laborious process.
Reasons
There are many reasons for thisdiseases:
- microorganisms that parasitize on the connective tissue (tuberculosis bacilli, pathogens of tick-borne borreliosis, chlamydia, treponema syphilis, bacteria that cause brucellosis);
- serum sickness;
- bacterial infections (streptococci, pneumococci, staphylococci);
- mycoplasmas, influenza viruses, adenoviruses, helminths, etc.;
- lupus, scleroderma, rheumatoid arthritis.
Currently, medicine is quite developed and successfully treats cardiac pathologies. Previously, when doctors did not have the necessary equipment, the presence of normal fluid in the pericardium of the heart was determined by listening. A large amount of liquid can be heard, accompanied by noise and hum that can be heard from a distance.
In addition to the above causes of pericarditis, myocardial infarction, pneumonia, pleurisy can lead to a violation of the norm of fluid in the pericardium in adults.
What is dangerous
One of the most serious complications of pericarditis can be cardiac tamponade. This is the most dangerous disease in which the organ is compressed. The patient feels shortness of breath when walking. After the accumulation of a large amount of fluid and a strong compression of the heart, shortness of breath appears even at rest. There is a decrease in cardiac output, as the myocardium of the left ventricle does not have enough blood.
When this disease is detected, the doctor is obliged to hospitalize the patient. The treatment consists directly in pumping out the accumulated fluid.
Dry andexudative
With the development of dry pericarditis, the patient has a dull pain in the region of the heart, which only intensifies with time. The use of nitroglycerin is useless. This is worth paying attention to. The pain symptom intensifies when taking a horizontal position and decreases when leaning forward. Coughing and breathing only makes the pain worse.
The specialist can observe the following picture: the patient is sitting, leaning forward, he is shivering, there is an increased body temperature. When listening to the heart, a creak is observed, similar to the rattle of snow. The patient needs to hold his breath so that the doctor is convinced of the correctness of the diagnosis. The fact is that such a creak can be confused with pleural friction. But the creaking with dry pericarditis is constant, does not stop when holding the breath.
With exudative pericarditis, the symptoms may not be very pronounced. The accumulation of exudate provokes the divergence of the sheets of the pericardium, which helps to reduce the pain symptom. Sometimes the pain may disappear altogether, but not for long. After some time, heaviness appears in the region of the heart, the patient has shortness of breath. Shortness of breath occurs first during physical activity, and then at rest. The pericardium, swollen from the liquid, begins to squeeze the organs close to the heart, accompanied by hiccups, a strong barking cough, weakness in the voice.
Pericarditis in children
How much fluid is normal in the pericardium in children? Many parents ask this question. In children, the amount of fluid inthe pericardium is normal if it does not exceed twenty milliliters.
Disease in children is accompanied by the following symptoms:
- pain symptom is more developed in the abdomen, the child does not feel pain in the heart;
- sleep disorder, while the child lies on his stomach, as he cannot sleep on his back;
- nausea, vomiting, regurgitation.
Causes of childhood pericarditis
Children's pericarditis can be caused by:
- thyroid disorder;
- lack of vitamins;
- heredity;
- various blood diseases;
- tumors of the heart, pericardium;
- hormonal failure;
- use of certain medications.
In newborns, streptococci, staphylococci, tonsillitis, etc. can provoke a disease. In rare cases, pericarditis can cause a disease such as nephritis. It is worth remembering that identifying pericarditis in children is much more difficult than in adults. Specialists use a cardiovisor to make a more accurate diagnosis.
Pericarditis in children is treated with antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs. When prescribing therapy, the age of the patient must be taken into account. The duration of the treatment course depends on the severity of the pathology in the child.
Diagnosis of disease
As mentioned above, the rate of fluid in the pericardium in ml should not exceed twenty units. Otherwise, it is a clear pathology.
Formerlydiagnosis of pericarditis was carried out only by listening. Currently, medicine has the ability to diagnose a disease using the following research methods:
- ultrasound examination makes it possible to make an accurate diagnosis with effusion pericarditis, since the apparatus clearly shows the splitting of the pericardial sheets and the accumulation of fluid;
- exudative pericarditis can be determined by taking a puncture and subsequent examination;
- an x-ray may show an enlarged heart shadow;
- Effluent pericarditis can be detected using an ECG procedure.
Treatment of pathology in adults
Treatment of any kind of pericarditis is accompanied by compulsory hospitalization. To avoid the onset of tamponade, the patient needs constant supervision of medical workers. Therapy is prescribed in accordance with the type and severity of the disease. The patient is discharged only when LDH and pericardial effusion are normal.
Surgical interventions are rarely used, only in extreme cases, when the patient's life is in danger. Basically, conservative treatment of fluid in the pericardium of the heart is carried out, the causes of which must be identified in advance.
The most popular drugs are:
- anti-inflammatory nonsteroidal drugs together with gastroprotectors (for example, "Ibuprofen", "Indomethacin");
- arrhythmia drugs;
- antibiotics that suppress the pathogen;
- anticoagulantsindirect action, which avoid the formation of blood clots;
- glucocorticosteroids.
Surgical intervention consists in opening the pericardial cavity and pumping out the fluid. Laser surgery has been successfully used, which has shown positive results for a long time. After this type of intervention, the amount of fluid in the pericardium drops to normal.
If the achievement of the desired effect by the above methods is impossible for any reason, cardiac intervention is used, in which the heart membrane is removed.
Prevention and rehabilitation
Prevention of pericarditis is mainly to prevent diseases that can cause an increase in the amount of fluid in the pericardium.
In the case when pericarditis has already manifested itself, the patient is limited to physical activity. After completing the course of treatment, a course of rehabilitation is necessary, which is desirable to take place in sanatoriums under the supervision of specialists. If the patient does not have such an opportunity, you should pay attention to special training, the selection of a suitable job that is not associated with hard physical labor.
Patients who have had pericarditis can be issued a disability group. It is determined by doctors according to the severity of the person's illness.
A few words in conclusion
So what is the normal amount of fluid in the pericardium? The pericardium connects to the diaphragm, blood vessels, and the inside of the sternum, while holding the heart in a stable position. The walls of the pericardium are separated by a smallthe amount of liquid that serves as a lubricant. This lubricant protects the walls of the pericardium from rubbing against each other. The rate of fluid in the pericardial cavity (in mm) is not more than twenty. This criterion is characteristic not only for adults, but also for children.
If you experience discomfort in the heart, heaviness in the chest, you should think about the possibility of pericarditis.
Based on the foregoing, it can be concluded that pericarditis is a severe and serious disease. They are sick not only adults, but also children, including newborns. There are various causes and treatments for pericardium. Fluid in the heart may increase or decrease. Treatment depends on the type and cause of the pathology. Specialists try to use conservative methods of therapy, surgical intervention is used only in extreme cases, when the patient's life is in danger. The symptoms of pericarditis can vary. For each type they are different. Still, it is worth paying attention to the primary signs: headaches, nausea and vomiting, pain and heaviness in the chest and heart area, noises and gnashing in the sternum. All of this can be an urgent reason to visit a cardiologist or internist. Only a specialist will be able to establish an accurate diagnosis, identify the cause of the disease and prescribe the correct treatment. It should be remembered that the transition of pericarditis to a chronic form can cost the patient his life. It is also possible to acquire a disability. Therefore, you should not hesitate with such symptoms and self-medicate.
