Does pericardial effusion have anything to do with drinking too much water?

Written by Li Hai Wen
Cardiology
Updated on May 03, 2025
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Pericardial effusion is not related to drinking water, and drinking water does not cause pericardial effusion. There are many reasons for pericardial effusion, among which the common main ones include:

First, tuberculous pericarditis, where infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis is one of the most common causes of pericardial effusion, often accompanied by symptoms such as fever in the late afternoon and night sweats, with the PPD test often showing a strong positive result.

Second, tumors, which are also a common cause of pericardial effusion, often accompanied by unexplained weight loss and other symptoms.

Third, heart failure, where patients with heart failure also often have pericardial effusion, with clinical symptoms including difficulty breathing, fatigue, and limb edema among other signs of heart failure, generally with a clear history of organic heart disease.

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Written by Di Zhi Yong
Cardiology
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Can pericardial effusion cause chest pain?

Pericardial effusion is a type of cardiovascular disease, and if it is severe, it can cause chest pain. This is primarily due to changes in heart function, with patients mainly experiencing symptoms such as palpitations, chest tightness, and difficulty breathing. If chest pain occurs, it indicates that the symptoms are very severe, and it is recommended to seek active treatment at a hospital, using medications to control heart failure or performing fluid extraction for examination. For the treatment of pericardial effusion, percutaneous fluid drainage can be chosen, which can also alleviate the patient’s condition. Generally, chest pain could also be caused by pericardial effusion. During this period, it's important to monitor changes in the patient's blood pressure, heart rate, and pulse. If blood pressure is too high or heart rate is too fast, it needs to be addressed.

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Written by Di Zhi Yong
Cardiology
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What is the cause of pericardial effusion with persistent high fever?

If the patient presents with pericardial effusion and experiences elevated body temperature, it may indicate the presence of an infection, suggesting that the symptoms are worsening. Currently, the treatment for pericardial effusion primarily involves puncture, fluid extraction, and laboratory analysis. If the pericardial effusion is severe or abundant, fever may occur. Since fever is an indicator of inflammation, it is necessary to use antibiotics for active treatment in order to control this condition. If the body temperature continues to rise, sometimes it is also necessary to use antipyretic drugs to alleviate the symptoms. Persistent high fever indicates that the condition has become very serious, signaling that the infection indices are extremely severe.

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Written by Di Zhi Yong
Cardiology
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Will pericardial effusion cause an increase in troponin levels?

In general, if a patient is diagnosed with pericardial effusion, troponin levels might also increase under stress conditions. This is because troponin is primarily used as a marker to assess myocardial infarction. An increase in troponin levels suggests the possibility of a myocardial infarction. However, under stress conditions, especially with pericardial effusion, troponin levels can rise. During this period, it is also advisable to perform an electrocardiogram or a cardiac echocardiography on the patient for a more definitive diagnosis. A mere increase in troponin levels does not conclusively indicate a problem; it is necessary to consider the patient’s current symptoms and results from other diagnostic tests.

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Written by Yuan Qing
Pulmonology
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Can tuberculous pleurisy cause pericardial effusion?

Tuberculous pleurisy can also cause pericardial effusion. Firstly, tuberculous pleurisy is actually caused by the tubercle bacillus, a type of immune response in the human body that manifests as inflammation in the serous cavity. The serous cavities include various types such as the pleura surrounding the lungs, the pericardium around the heart, and the peritoneum in the abdomen. Therefore, tuberculous inflammation can occur in multiple serous cavities, including the pleura, pericardium, and abdominal cavity. Of course, when diagnosing, one cannot solely rely on the presence of effusion in multiple serous cavities to diagnose tuberculous pleurisy. Instead, it is essential to aspirate the pleural fluid and test certain markers in it, such as adenosine deaminase and lactate dehydrogenase. Most importantly, the presence of acid-fast bacilli in the fluid should be checked. If detected, it can generally be diagnosed as tuberculous.

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Written by Di Zhi Yong
Cardiology
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Why does pericardial effusion cause difficulty in breathing?

Pericardial effusion primarily manifests as palpitations, chest tightness, and difficulty breathing. Sometimes, pericardial effusion can exacerbate heart failure. Once heart failure is alleviated, these symptoms can also subside. Currently, it appears that pericardial effusion mainly presents as palpitations, chest tightness, and difficulty breathing, which are related to diet and fatigue, especially after exercise. This increase in myocardial oxygen consumption can lead to heart failure, resulting in difficulty breathing, particularly exertional dyspnea. At this point, it is necessary to provide low-flow oxygen inhalation and improve the patient's cardiopulmonary function, which is also helpful. It is still necessary to actively treat pericardial effusion. The treatment mainly involves diagnostic aspiration of the fluid. If the pericardial effusion is caused by inflammation, it can be treated with antibiotics.