Acute Constrictive Epicarditis Following Infectious Mononucleosis

Abstract

The case history of a 24-year-old man is reviewed, who had pericarditis, cardiac tamponade, and many other manifestations of infectious mononucleosis. Cardiac-output estimations during the course of the illness showed a marked drop in his cardiac index. This, together with other findings, was interpreted as being due to the development of constrictive epicarditis. At operation the epicardium was densely adherent to the underlying myocardium. After extensive resection of both layers of the pericardium the patient made an uneventful recovery.