Outside of early defibrillation and high-quality CPR, little has been shown to improve outcomes in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA). In theory, rapid identification of the underlying cause of arrest can be beneficial. Point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) has been adopted into cardiac arrest care by many emergency clinicians for this reason.
Pericardial effusions and pericardial tamponade can be caused by multiple mechanisms (e.g.,traumatic, infectious, inflammatory, etc.)
A 68-year old obese female with a past medical history of osteoarthritis, diabetes, and cervical spinal fusion presents to the Emergency Department (ED) complaining of generalized weakness for the last week. In addition, she reports that she had cold symptoms approximately one week before the onset of her weakness. Upon further questioning, the patient also reports numbness and tingling of her bilateral lower extremities. The review of systems is otherwise negative.