Suggest treatment for enlarged heart with history of pericarditis
Patient: My father suffered what we thought was a heart attack two weeks ago. We later found out that he had paracarditis and was hospitalized for 5 days. They released him under the advice that he see the cardiologist within a week. He has gotten worse, and went to urgent care. They took xrays of chest and said his heart was also enlarged. He is having hallucinations also. His cardio appt was cancelled today because of high winds and power outages. What should we do? Doctor: Hello there I understand your concernPerhaps your father has accumulated fluid in the protective lining of his     heart giving rise to the enlarged shadow on the skiagram. He needs to be put under observation,  a bedside echo to be done which will reveal the amount of fluid and accordingly the steps will be taken. His hallucinations maybe on account of his heart being under stress and creating difficulty to pump thereby creating problem with oxygenation.Hope I have been able to answer your query..Speedy recovery to your dad