References:
- Global Infectious Diseases and Epidemiology Online Network: Infectious Diseases of the Philippines, 2013 eBook Edition, ISBN 978-1-61755-582-4, by Stephen Berger. Accessed here.
| Agent | BACTERIUM. Streptococcus pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus, et al |
| Reservoir | Human |
| Vector | None |
| Vehicle | Endogenous |
| Incubation Period | Variable |
| Diagnostic Tests | Ultrasonography and cardiac imaging techniques. Culture of pericardial fluid (include mycobacterial culture). |
| Typical Adult Therapy | Antimicrobial agent(s) appropriate to known or anticipated pathogen. Drainage as indicated |
| Typical Pediatric Therapy | As for adult |
| Clinical Hints | Fever, chest pain and dyspnea; patients are acutely ill and have overt signs such as venous distention, and an enlarged cardiac ‘shadow’; concurrent pneumonia or upper respiratory infection may be present; case-fatality rate = 20%. |
| Synonyms | Bacterial pericarditis, Pericardite |
Pericarditis often follows a prodrome of upper respiratory infection.
- Typical findings include fever and chest pain.
- The pain may be pleuritic or positional (i.e., exacerbated by bending forward) and associated with signs and symptoms of congestive heart failure.
- Concurrent myocarditis, pneumonia or pleuritis are often present.