what is the pathophysiology of a cardiac tamponade
In: Biology
So your heart is covered by a sac called the pericardium, it got a little bit of liquid in it to allow for the heart to pump without too much irritation, like heart lube. So a cardiac tamponade is when blood (usually) gets between the actual heart and it’s sac. This filling will greatly diminish the hearts ability to pump, by taking up the space on the outside of the heart, but inside the sealed sac of the pericardium. It’s usually blood but not limited to just blood. An infection of the pericardium can also cause this restrictive process. This leads to [Becks triad](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beck%27s_triad_(cardiology)). Ultimate if not corrected in a very timely manner death is imminent. The emergent fix is called a pericardiocentisis, where a needle is placed in the chest to drain the accumulation of fluid.
The heart sits in a bag and pumps.
With tamponade, there is blood in that bag. This removes the room for the pump to work.
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