Pyogenic pericarditis in a patient with burns--a rare complication.

We report a patient with 60 per cent of the body surface area burned who developed pyogenic pericarditis which was treated successfully by open pericardial drain. In an estimated 1000 patients with burns treated in this hospital over a period of 5 years from 1984 to 1989, this is the first patient developing pyogenic pericarditis. A possible pathological basis for the sequence of events is discussed.