Congenital Absence of the Left Pericardium FREE

IVAN DIMICH, MD; HERMAN GROSSMAN, MD; FREDERICK O. BOWMAN, MD; SYLVIA P. GRIFFITHS, MD

Received for publication April 30, 1965.

Reprint requests to Department of Pediatrics, College of Physicians and Surgeons, 3975 Broadway, New York, NY 10032 (Dr. Griffiths).

Am J Dis Child. 1965;110(3):309-314. doi:10.1001/archpedi.1965.02090030323017.

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ABSTRACT

ABSTRACT | REFERENCES

THE ISOLATED ANOMALY of congenital absence of the left side of the pericardium produces a characteristically deformed cardiac silhouette on chest roentgenogram. The radiographic features of this malformation were first described by Ellis et al in their excellent review of the subject in 1959.¹

It is the purpose of this paper to report the case of a child with absent left pericardium in whom the diagnosis was first suspected on films of the chest. The technique of induction of left pneumothorax to establish the diagnosis is illustrated.

Anatomical and Functional Considerations Congenital pericardial defects may be partial (so called foramen type) or complete (involving the left, right, or both sides). They are most frequently left sided and range in size from small holes overlying the pulmonary artery or left atrium to absence of the entire left pericardium. Among the reported cases in the literature, complete defects are more common

REFERENCES

ABSTRACT | REFERENCES

Ellis, K.; Leeds, N. E.; and Himmelstein, A.: Congenital Deficiencies in the Parietal Pericardium: Review With Two New Cases Including Successful Diagnosis by Roentgenography , Amer J Roentgen 82:125, 1959;.

Sunderland, S., and Wright-Smith, R. J.: Congenital Pericardial Defects , Brit Heart J 6:167, 1944;.

Hipona, F. A., and Crummy, A. B.: Congenital Pericardial Defect Associated With Tetralogy of Fallot: Herniation of Normal Lung Into the Pericardial Cavity , Circulation 29:132, 1964;.

Bor, I., and Kafka, V.: Aplasia of the Pericardium , J Cardiov Surg 1-2:389, 1960-1961;.

Berglund, E.; Sarnoff, S. J.; and Isaacs, J. P.: Ventricular Function: Role of the Pericardium in Regulation of Cardiovascular Dynamics , Circ Res 3:133, 1955;.

Moore, T. C., and Shumacker, H. B., Jr.: Congenital and Experimentally Produced Pericardial Defect , Angiology 4:1, 1953;.

Hering, A. C.; Wilson, J. G.; and Ball, R. E., Jr.: Congenital Deficiency of the Pericardium , J Thorac Cardiov Surg 40:49, 1960;.

Kavanagh, G. D.; Musgrove, E.; and Stanwood, D.: Congenital Pericardial Defects: Report of a Case , New Eng J Med 265:692, 1961;.

Fowler, N. O.: Congenital Defect of the Pericardium: Its Resemblance to Pulmonary Artery Enlargement , Circulation 26:114, 1962;.

Southworth, H., and Stevenson, C. S.: Congenital Defects of Pericardium , Arch Intern Med 61:223, 1938;.

Boxall, R.: Incomplete Pericardial Sac; Escape of Heart Into Left Pleural Cavity , Trans Obstet Soc London 28:209, 1887;.

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