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Case Reports
. 2016 Sep 20:25:13.
doi: 10.11604/pamj.2016.25.13.8731. eCollection 2016.

Pericardial effusion with cardiac tamponade caused by a central venous catheter in a very low birth weight infant

Fatma-Zohra Chioukh  1 , Karim Ben Ameur  1 , Hayet Ben Hmida  1 , Kamel Monastiri  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Pericardial effusion with cardiac tamponade caused by a central venous catheter in a very low birth weight infant

Fatma-Zohra Chioukh et al. Pan Afr Med J. .

Abstract

With more and more extreme premature and very low-birth weight babies being resuscitated, umbilical central venous catheterisation is now being used more frequently in neonatal intensive care. One of the life-threatening complications is pericardial effusion and cardiac tamponade; however, it is potentially reversible when it is caught in time. The authors present a case of cardiac tamponade following umbilical venous catheterisation in a neonate. The patient was diagnosed at the appropriate time by echocardiography and urgent pericardiocentesis proved lifesaving.

Keywords: Newborn; cardiac tamponade; pericardial effusion; pericardiocentesis; umbilical central venous catheterization.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Chest x-ray showing increase of the cardiac area
Figure 2
Figure 2
Electrocardiogram showing microvoltage
Figure 3
Figure 3
Four chamber echocardiography view showing a significant pericardial effusion
Figure 4
Figure 4
Reduction of pericardial effusion on echocardiogram immediately after pericardiocentesis
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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References

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