Pericardite constritiva por tuberculose, uma condição de difícil diagnóstico / Constrictive pericarditis due to tuberculosis a difficult diagnosis condition

A pericardite constritiva (PC) é uma condição clínica caracterizada pela presença de inflamação do tecido pericárdico, culminando em constrição cardíaca. A tuberculose pode acometer o pericárdio e levar à uma condição clínica conhecida como pericardite tuberculosa (PT). Relata-se o caso de um paciente jovem, internado com queixas de insuficiência cardíaca e quadro de PC em que o diagnóstico etiológico de PT foi confirmado por exclusão e resposta à terapêutica.

Pericarditis constrictiva por tuberculosis, una condición de difícil diagnóstico / Constrictive pericarditis due to tuberculosis, a difficult diagnosis condition

La pericarditis constrictiva (PC) es una condición clínica caracterizada por la presencia de inflamación del tejido pericárdico, culminando en constricción cardíaca. La tuberculosis puede afectar al pericardio y llevarlo a una condición clínica conocida como pericarditis tuberculosa (PT). Se relata el caso de un paciente joven, internado con síntomas de insuficiencia cardíaca y cuadro.

Association of types of dyspnea including 'bendopnea' with cardiopulmonary disease in primary care. / Associação dos tipos de dispneia e da "flexopneia" com as patologias cardiopulmonares nos cuidados de saúde primários.

INTRODUCTION: Dyspnea is the symptom most commonly reported by patients with heart failure (HF) and/or pulmonary disease, the obese and the elderly. Recently 'bendopnea' (shortness of breath when bending forward) has been described in patients with HF. OBJECTIVE: To determine the association of exertional dyspnea, orthopnea, paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea and bendopnea with chronic disease, especially heart failure, and their phenotypes in primary care. METHODS: This cross-sectional study included 633 individuals aged between 45 and 99 years enrolled in a primary care program in Niteroi, Brazil. Participants underwent clinical assessment and laboratory tests and completed a questionnaire, all on the same day. RESULTS: Paroxysmal nocturnal dyspnea and bendopnea were associated with HF (unadjusted OR 2.42, 95% CI 1.10-5.29 and OR 2.59, 95% CI 1.52-4.44, respectively). In multivariate models, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary heart disease and myocardial infarction were not associated with bendopnea. CONCLUSIONS: Bendopnea was the only type of dyspnea not linked to respiratory disease or coronary heart disease. Even after adjusting for depression and body mass index, the association remained with HF with or without preserved ejection fraction, and bendopnea thus appears to be a promising symptom to differentiate HF from the other two disease groups.

Two potentially fatal surprises in the preoperative assessment of an asymptomatic young adult. / Duas surpresas potencialmente fatais em avaliação pré-operatória de adulto jovem assintomático.

Isolated left ventricular non-compaction is a rare disease classified as a primary genetic cardiomyopathy and is characterized by heart failure, systemic embolism and ventricular arrhythmias. The diagnosis is established by Doppler echocardiography. We report the case of an asymptomatic young adult, with no history of heart disease, who underwent preoperative assessment for low-risk orthopedic surgery. The electrocardiogram showed left bundle branch block, which prompted further investigation with Doppler echocardiography, cardiac computed tomography angiography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. A diagnosis of isolated left ventricular non-compaction and pulmonary embolism was made. Some aspects of preoperative assessment in low-risk surgical patients are discussed.