The incidence of significant pericardial effusion and tamponade following major aortic root surgery.

Objective: To examine the hypothesis that the incidence of significant pericardial effusion following aortic root surgery is higher than anticipated after cardiac surgery.
Design: A retrospective data analysis.
Setting: A tertiary referral centre for cardiothoracic surgery.
Subjects: All patients undergoing aortic root surgery either with or without aortic valve replacement between January 1991 and July 1993.
Results: Three patients developed late cardiac tamponade (7-10 days post-operatively) and a further three developed clinically significant pericardial effusions as a result of post-pericardiotomy syndrome. The 31.6% (95% confidence limit: 12.5-56%) incidence of significant pericardial effusions following aortic root surgery is therefore significantly higher than anticipated after cardiac surgery (0.8-6).
Conclusion: These data support the hypothesis that the incidence of significant pericardial effusion following aortic root surgery is higher than anticipated after cardiac surgery. We recommend that echocardiography is routinely performed during the post-operative period in these patients to exclude significant pericardial effusions.