Keywords:
MR, CT-Angiography, CT, Cardiovascular system, Cardiac, Normal variants, Congenital
Authors:
G. Szarf 1, G. Meirelles2, C. verrastro2, V. B. Antunes2, I. Missrie2, A. Marchini da Silva2, C. Figueiredo2, A. V. B. Pavani2, V. Lajarin2, J. Capobianco2; 1Sao Paulo /BR, 2Sao Paulo/BR
DOI:
10.26044/esti2019/P-0048
Background
The pericardium is a two-layered membrane,
composed by the inner serosa (the visceral pericardium) and the outer fibrosa (the parietal pericardium) that surrounds the heart and the origins of the great vessels.
Those layers are separated by a small amount of serous fluid,
up to 50 mL,
that is mainly an ultrafiltrate of plasma.
The parietal pericardium extends cranially above level of the aortic root, is continuous with the deep cervical fascia and is attached to the sternum and the diaphragm by ligaments that impede cardiac displacement.
There are some pocketlike structures,
the pericardial recesses,
that have a reserve function to accumulate fluid,
and should not be coffused with aortic dissection or enlarged mediastinal lymph nodes,
which is a pitfall that has special importance in oncologic disease.
The pericardium minimize ventricular dilatation and also limits the displacement of the heart in the mediastinum.
Additionaly,
it limits the spread of infection and inflammation from adjacent mediastinal structures and is thought to reduce friction between the heart and surrounding structures.
It can be affected by variuos pathologic processes.