What is the most likely diagnosis?
- 68 year-old with fever and chest pain
Frontal Chest Radiographs at Time of Surgery and Three Weeks Later
- Pulmonary Embolism
- Tuberculosis
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Postpericardiotomy Syndrome
- Pneumonia
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Answer:
4. Postpericardiotomy Syndrome
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Postpericardiotomy Syndrome
General Considerations
- Autoimmune and febrile illness that can follow coronary artery bypass surgery
- May also be seen following myocardial infarction (Dressler’s syndrome)
- Reported to occur in 10-40% of cases
- Combination of pericarditis, pleuritis and pneumonitis
- Believed to have immunologic cause
- Possibly a latent viral infection may be cause