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Case Reports
. 2020 Dec 25;12(12):e12286.
doi: 10.7759/cureus.12286.

Rare Presentation of Cardiac Tamponade in a Patient With Subclinical Hypothyroidism

Muhammad Usman Almani  1 , Muhammad Usman  1 , Abdul Wahab Arif  2 , Muhammad Talha Ayub  3 , Noor Fatima  4
Affiliations
Case Reports

Rare Presentation of Cardiac Tamponade in a Patient With Subclinical Hypothyroidism

Muhammad Usman Almani et al. Cureus. .

Abstract

Cardiovascular effects of hypothyroidism include bradycardia, diastolic hypertension, atrial fibrillation, prolonged QT interval leading to torsades de pointes, varying degrees of AV block, accelerated coronary artery disease, and pericardial effusion. Cardiac tamponade is rare in patients with hypothyroidism because of pericardial distensibility and slow accumulation of fluid. The amount and rate of accumulation of pericardial effusion are related to the severity of hypothyroidism. Though rare, significant pericardial effusion can be a manifestation of subclinical hypothyroidism.

Keywords: cardiac tamponade; hypothyroid pericardial effusion; subclinical hypothyroidism.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Chest x-ray: enlarged cardiac silhouette
Figure 2
Figure 2. CT chest: moderate- to large-sized pericardial effusion
Black arrow showing pericardial effusion; RV: right ventricle; LV: left ventricle; A: aorta; CT: computed tomography.
Figure 3
Figure 3. TTE (long para-sternal axis view): anterior pericardial effusion
White arrow showing pericardial effusion compressing the right ventricle; TTE: transthoracic echocardiogram; RV: right ventricle, LV: left ventricle; A: aortic root.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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