A Case of Surgical Treatment Applying a Denver Shunt for Intractable Pericardial Effusion

Sojiro Amamoto＊	Manabu Sato＊	Hiromitsu Kawasaki＊
Kozo Naito＊

（Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Saga-ken Medical Centre Koseikan, Saga, Janan）

Surgical management is recommended for a patient with intractable pericardial effusion indicating medical treatment resistance and cardiac tamponade. We report our experience of surgical treatment applying a Denver shunt for intractable pericardial effusion. A 60-year-old woman suffered pericarditis accompanying pericardial effusion complications of systemic lupus erythematosus. She had repeatedly undergone pericardial drainage, however, there was a possibility of increased cardiac tamponade. Surgical treatment consisted of pericardial fenestration with thoracoscopic assist and right pleuro-peritoneal shunt using a Denver shunt. The heart failure symptoms disappeared and pericardial effusion considerably decreased after surgery. The postoperative course was uneventful without recurrence after 1-year of follow up. In the literature, postoperative complications such infection and shunt obstruction have been reported. Careful follow up is mandatory and selection of self-manageable cases is important.

 

Jpn. J. Cardiovasc. Surg. 48:125-127（2019）

Keywords：pericardial effusion;Denver shun;pericardial fenestration;pleuro-peritoneal shunt