Constrictive pericarditis after cardiac surgery.

Constrictive pericarditis is an infrequent complication of cardiac surgery. We report the case of a young woman who developed dyspnea and ascites 3 years after surgical closure of an atrial septal defect, and the findings at chest X-ray, computed tomographic scan and Doppler echocardiography are described. Epidemiology of the disease, new pathophysiologic concepts, diagnostic features, and therapeutic targets are reviewed.