Pericardite

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Last reviewed: 11 Dec 2025
Last updated: 28 Sep 2023

Summary

Definition

History and exam

Key diagnostic factors

  • presença de fatores de risco
  • dor torácica
  • atrito pericárdico
Full details

Other diagnostic factors

  • febre
  • mialgias
Full details

Risk factors

  • sexo masculino
  • idade entre 20 e 50 anos
  • infarto do miocárdio transmural
  • cirurgia cardíaca
  • neoplasia
  • infecção viral e infecção bacteriana
  • uremia ou em diálise
  • doenças autoimunes sistêmicas
  • lesão pericárdica
  • radiação do mediastino
Full details

Diagnostic tests

1st tests to order

  • eletrocardiograma (ECG)
  • troponina sérica
  • pericardiocentese
  • proteína C-reativa
  • ureia sérica e eletrólitos séricos
  • hemograma completo
  • testes da função hepática
  • radiografia torácica
  • ecocardiografia
Full details

Tests to consider

  • hemoculturas
  • velocidade de hemossedimentação
  • creatina quinase
  • triagem autoimune
  • perfil viral
  • tomografia computadorizada (TC) do tórax ou ressonância nuclear magnética (RNM) cardíaca
  • biópsia pericárdica
Full details

Treatment algorithm

INITIAL

suspeita de pericardite

ACUTE

idiopático ou viral (não purulento)

não idiopática ou viral (não purulenta)

purulenta

ONGOING

doença recorrente

Contributors

Expert advisers

Shrilla Banerjee, MD, FRCP

Consultant Interventional Cardiologist

East Surrey Hospital

Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust

UK

Disclosures

SB has received speaker fees for educational lectures (presentation content was her own) and meeting participation from Menarini, Edwards Lifesciences, Abbott Vascular, and Shockwave IVL. She has also participated in an Advisory Board for Sahajanand Medical Technologies Limited. SB has received travel sponsorship from Biosensors International to attend the PCR meeting in Paris in 2022. She has prepared a manuscript on coronary microvascular dysfunction for Abbott for Cardiovascular News (no royalties).

Acknowledgements

BMJ Best Practice would like to gratefully acknowledge the previous expert contributors, whose work has been retained in parts of the content:

Resham Baruah MBBS, BSc MRCP, PhD

Consultant Cardiologist

Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust

London

UK

Katherine Wu MD

Associate Professor of Medicine

Division of Cardiology

Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions

Baltimore

MD

Disclosures

RB has received honoraria/speakers’ fees from Novartis and Boehringer Ingelheim. KW declares that she has no competing interests.

Peer reviewers

Laura Dobson, MBChB, MD

Consultant Cardiologist

Wythenshawe Hospital

Manchester University Foundation Trust

Manchester

UK

Disclosures

LD declares that she has no competing interests.

Peer reviewer acknowledgements

BMJ Best Practice topics are updated on a rolling basis in line with developments in evidence and guidance. The peer reviewers listed here have reviewed the content at least once during the history of the topic.

Disclosures

Peer reviewer affiliations and disclosures pertain to the time of the review.

References

Our in-house evidence and editorial teams collaborate with international expert contributors and peer reviewers to ensure that we provide access to the most clinically relevant information possible.

Key articles

Adler Y, Charron P, Imazio M, et al. 2015 ESC guidelines for the diagnosis and management of pericardial diseases. Eur Heart J. 2015 Nov 7;36(42):2921-64.Full text  Abstract

Chiabrando JG, Bonaventura A, Vecchié A, et al. Management of acute and recurrent pericarditis: JACC state-of-the-art review. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2020 Jan 7;75(1):76-92.Full text  Abstract

Reference articles

A full list of sources referenced in this topic is available to users with access to all of BMJ Best Practice.
  • Pericardite images
  • Differentials

    • Embolia pulmonar
    • Infarto do miocárdio ou isquemia
    • Pneumonia
    More Differentials
  • Guías de práctica clínica

    • 2015 ESC guidelines for the diagnosis and management of pericardial diseases
    • Clinical recommendations for multimodality cardiovascular imaging of patients with pericardial disease
    More Guías de práctica clínica
  • Folletos para el paciente

    Pericardite

    Más Folletos para el paciente
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