Recent role of imaging in the diagnosis of pericardial disease.

Noninvasive cardiac imaging techniques have made a striking impact on the evaluation and management of pericardial disorders. Two-dimensional and Doppler echocardiography are the methods of choice in the evaluation of pericardial effusion and cardiac tamponade. Magnetic resonance imaging, computed tomography, and transesophageal echocardiography are valuable in the assessment of pericardial thickness in suspected cases of constrictive pericarditis. Filling dysfunction associated with constrictive pericarditis is well demonstrated by Doppler flow velocity recordings of intracardiac flow jets, and pulmonary and hepatic venous flow streams. Tissue Doppler echocardiography, by which tissue velocity of myocardial regions and mitral annulus are analyzed, offers additional information in the differentiation of constrictive pericarditis and restrictive cardiomyopathy. Magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography are the techniques of choice in the recognition of unusual disorders such as pericardial cysts, tumors invading the pericardium, and congenital absence of pericardium. Noninvasive imaging aids not only in the diagnosis of pericardial diseases, but also in the guidance of optimal therapy.