Cardiac 7

A 45 year old man involved in an RTA is reviewed in the SHD unit. He sustained rib fractures and blunt force trauma to the left of his chest. What does the echo show?

Answer

This patient has a large left sided pleural effusion and a small pericardial effusion. It is important to be able to differentiate the two. An important landmark to be aware of is the descending aorta. Pericardial effusions will be anterior to the descending aorta as the posterior pericardial reflection passes anterior to the descending aorta. Pleural effusions are posterior to the descending aorta.