Isolated pericardial rupture with left-sided haematothorax after blunt chest trauma

Abstract

Pericardial rupture after blunt chest trauma is described in the literature. The rupture is mostly caused by high velocity trauma with associated injuries. As a result the patients are often critically ill. We describe a case of a 59-year-old man who suffered from an isolated pericardial rupture with a left-sided haematothorax diagnosed 3 months after minimal blunt chest trauma. The patient was operated upon and the defect was closed without detrimental sequelae.