Specialized care for recurrent and complex pericardial disease

Illustration showing inflammation of the pericardium. Pericardial disease can be difficult to diagnose and manage when symptoms persist or return. At the MedStar Health Pericardial Disease Program, our specialists evaluate the complete clinical picture—including symptoms, inflammatory markers, echocardiography, cardiac MRI, treatment history, and associated conditions—to understand what may be driving the disease and develop an individualized path forward.

Our program brings together expertise in pericardial disease, advanced cardiac imaging, rheumatology, infectious disease, cardiothoracic surgery, and clinical research for patients with recurrent, refractory, constrictive, effusive, and diagnostically challenging disease.

Program Director S. Wagas Haider, MD, and Gabby Weisman, MD, view image of the heart of a patient with pericardial disease.
Program Director S. Waqas Haider, MD, and Gabby Weissman, MD, view image of the heart of a patient with pericardial disease.

When should you see a pericardial disease specialist?

Specialty evaluation may be appropriate when:

Pericarditis keeps coming back or symptoms never fully resolve.
Symptoms continue despite standard anti-inflammatory treatment.
Repeated or prolonged corticosteroid treatment has been needed.
A targeted or steroid-sparing treatment strategy is being considered.
Symptoms, inflammatory markers, imaging, and prior treatment response do not appear to fit together.
There is concern for constriction, recurrent pericardial effusion, myocardial involvement, or another complex diagnosis.

Conditions we treat

The MedStar Health Pericardial Disease Program provides specialized evaluation and treatment for:

Acute, recurrent, and persistent Pericarditis
Refractory or treatment-dependent pericarditis
Constrictive and effusive-constrictive pericarditis
Pericardial effusion and cardiac tamponade
Myopericarditis and perimyocarditis
Post-cardiac injury syndromes, including Dressler syndrome
Pericardial disease associated with autoimmune, inflammatory, infectious, or systemic illness
Complex cases with discordant symptoms, biomarkers, imaging, or prior treatment response

A comprehensive approach to complex pericardial disease

Patients with similar symptoms can be in very different disease states. Our specialists combine the medical history, physical examination, laboratory data, imaging, and previous treatment response to distinguish active inflammation from structural or hemodynamic disease, myocardial involvement, treatment-related issues, and other explanations for persistent symptoms.

Understand what is driving the symptoms

We evaluate the complete clinical picture to determine what may be contributing to persistent or recurrent symptoms.

Use advanced imaging to clarify the disease state

Echocardiography and cardiac MRI can help determine whether inflammation is active and whether there is effusion, constriction, or myocardial involvement.

Identify the disease phenotype

We assess whether the disease is inflammatory, noninflammatory, effusive, constrictive, myocardial, or mixed.

Match treatment to the condition

Treatment is individualized based on the disease state, prior response to treatment, coexisting conditions, and patient goals.

Reassess the response

Follow-up may integrate symptoms, biomarkers, echocardiography, and cardiac MRI when appropriate to assess treatment response, recurrence risk, and whether sustained remission has been achieved.

Our providers

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Insurance

MedStar Health accepts most major health insurance plans. If you are uncertain as to whether your individual health insurance plan is accepted at MedStar Health, please call your insurance company.

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