Pericardial disease are conditions that affect your pericardium. Your pericardium is a flexible, two-layered sac that surrounds your heart. Your pericardium contains your heart in your chest wall. It ...

The inflammation or infection that occurs in the pericardium is called pericarditis. Inflammation of the pericardial layers ensues when the membrane gets thickened and the layers rub against each ...

Dear Dr. Donohue: A 55-year-old relative of mine was discovered to have a pericardial effusion after a routine heart scan. We have been told this is usually the result of lupus, rheumatoid arthritis ...

Acute pericarditis is a condition in which inflammation occurs in the pericardium, the fluid-filled sac that surrounds the heart. “Acute” means the condition develops quickly or suddenly. The ...

Dressler’s syndrome is a rare but treatable type of inflammation in the sac surrounding the heart. It develops shortly after a heart injury, such as a heart attack, and may return after treatment. The ...

Pericarditis is an inflammation of the pericardium, which is the sac that surrounds the heart. The pericardium normally functions to protect the heart, and reduce friction between the heart and ...

Paul G. Donohue, M.D. DEAR DR. DONOHUE: A 55-year-old relative of mine was discovered to have a pericardial effusion after a routine heart scan. We have been told that this is usually the result of ...