Congenital partial pericardial defect: surgical correction by partial pericardiectomy through a median sternotomy.

A case of symptomatic congenital pericardial defect with herniation of the left atrial appendage is reported. The patient had experienced increasing fatigue, chest pain, shortness of breath, and slight cyanosis. A partial pericardiectomy through a median sternotomy was performed and the patient made an uneventful recovery.