Clinical case: Tuberculous myopericarditis in the cardiology practice

Abstract

Bolshaya Pirogovskaya ul. 2-4, Moscow, 119435 Russia Pericarditis is not enough researched and described in literature despite the emergence of a large quantity of up-to-date laboratory and instrumental methods of verification. The main problem is that pericarditis might be a sign of many infectious and non-infectious diseases. It is quite difficult to define the etiopathogenetic reason of process. The article presents a clinical observation of a 53 years old mail patient with paroxysms of atrial flutter, non-symptomatic febrile fever, arthralgia and signs of exudative pericarditis, which were manifested after the acute viral infection. The symptoms have been lasting for 8 months before the patient's hospitalization. In lab tests anemia, leucopenia, increase level of platelets and increase antinuclear antibody level were found. Several conceptions were considered: cancer with paraneoplastic syndrome, systemic disease, infectious process, myeloma, which were subsequently excluded. Due to the fact that pericardial effusion may often be associated with tuberculosis Diaskin test and T-SPOT were performed and they appeared to be positive. After several months of antituberculous treatment temperature normalized, atrial flutter episodes and arthralgia diminished. So empirically and laboratory tuberculous pericarditis with atypical manifestation was confirmed. The particularity of this observation is a nontypical clinical picture and the absence of a primary focus of infection. That is why the clinicians could not define the diagnosis rapidly.