Blunt traumatic rupture of the pericardium with cardiac herniation: two cases diagnosed using computed tomography.

Traumatic ruptures of the pericardium with cardiac herniation are infrequent, and their radiological pattern little familiar, so that they are often missed preoperatively. Few reports have emphasised the use of a CT scan as a tool for diagnosis and CT scan signs have not been well documented. We report on two cases of traumatic herniation of the heart for which a CT scan brought a major contribution for diagnosis. We describe the presence of an empty pericardial sac on CT slices which allowed us to diagnose the cardiac herniation. These observations demonstrate that CT scans can contribute to the diagnosis of pericardial rupture with cardiac herniation.