Ask the Expert

Get answers to your heart disease prevention questions.

Note: This is for informational purposes only. Doctors cannot provide a diagnosis or individual treatment advice via e-mail. Please consult your physician about your specific health care concerns.

Cardiac tamponade - Overview

Alternative Names

Tamponade; Pericardial tamponade

Definition of Cardiac tamponade:

Cardiac tamponade is compression of the heart that occurs when blood or fluid builds up in the space between the myocardium (heart muscle) and the pericardium (outer covering sac of the heart).

Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

In this condition, blood or fluid collects in the pericardium. This prevents the ventricles from expanding fully. The excess pressure from the fluid prevents the heart from functioning normally.

Cardiac tamponade can occur due to:

Dissecting aortic aneurysm (thoracic)
End-stage lung cancer
Heart attack (acute MI)
Heart surgery
Pericarditis caused by bacterial or viral infections
Wounds to the heart

Other potential causes include:

Heart tumors
Hypothyroidism
Kidney failure
Placement of central lines
Radiation therapy to the chest
Recent invasive heart procedures
Recent open heart surgery
Systemic lupus erythematosus

Cardiac tamponade occurs in approximately 2 out of 10,000 people.

Heart, front view

Pericardium

Cardiac tamponade

Reviewed last on: 5/17/2010
A.D.A.M. Editorial Team: David Zieve, MD, MHA, and David R. Eltz. Previously reviewed by Shabir Bhimji, MD, PhD, Specializing in Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery, Midland, TX. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network (5/17/2010).

References

Jacob R, Grimm RA. Pericardial disease. In: Carey WD, ed. Cleveland Clinic: Current Clinical Medicine. 1st ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier;2008:chap 23.

The information provided herein should not be used during any medical emergency or for the diagnosis or treatment of any medical condition. A licensed medical professional should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment of any and all medical conditions. Call 911 for all medical emergencies. Links to other sites are provided for information only -- they do not constitute endorsements of those other sites. © 1997- A.D.A.M., Inc. Any duplication or distribution of the information contained herein is strictly prohibited.

A.D.A.M., Inc. is accredited by URAC, also known as the American Accreditation HealthCare Commission (www.urac.org). URAC's accreditation program is an independent audit to verify that A.D.A.M. follows rigorous standards of quality and accountability. A.D.A.M. is among the first to achieve this important distinction for online health information and services. Learn more about A.D.A.M.'s editorial policy, editorial process and privacy policy. A.D.A.M. is also a founding member of Hi-Ethics and subscribes to the principles of the Health on the Net Foundation (www.hon.ch).

Connect with UMMC

© 2011 University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC). All rights reserved.
UMMC is a member of the University of Maryland Medical System,
22 S. Greene Street, Baltimore, MD 21201. TDD: 1-800-735-2258 or 1.800.492.5538

Home > Medical Reference > Encyclopedia (English)