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Description

T is for tamponade, one of the reversible causes of cardiac arrest in the H’s & T’s.

The pericardium is an inflexible fibrous 'bag' around the heart. If extra material accumulates here, e.g. blood in trauma, it will quickly crush the heart, preventing it from pumping. It is usually diagnosed by an echocardiogram which is fancy speak for an ultrasound scan of the heart.

In an emergency, cardiac tamponade can be decompressed with a needle to remove fluid and relieve pressure (pericardiocentesis).

Check out my Kickstarter to get an illustrated poster summarising all the H’s & T’s, and support the development of a video overview to help medics save lives. (www.kickstarter.com/projects/a… )

The next stretch goal is to animate these illustrations, so if that’s something you’d like to see - support and share the project!

Description

T is for tamponade, one of the reversible causes of cardiac arrest in the H’s & T’s.

The pericardium is an inflexible fibrous 'bag' around the heart. If extra material accumulates here, e.g. blood in trauma, it will quickly crush the heart, preventing it from pumping. It is usually diagnosed by an echocardiogram which is fancy speak for an ultrasound scan of the heart.

In an emergency, cardiac tamponade can be decompressed with a needle to remove fluid and relieve pressure (pericardiocentesis).

Check out my Kickstarter to get an illustrated poster summarising all the H’s & T’s, and support the development of a video overview to help medics save lives. (www.kickstarter.com/projects/a… )

The next stretch goal is to animate these illustrations, so if that’s something you’d like to see - support and share the project!