HIV induced pericarditis causes


 * Associate Editor-In-Chief: Varun Kumar, M.B.B.S.; Lakshmi Gopalakrishnan, M.B.B.S.

Etiology
It is often difficult to identify the etiology of pericardial effusion in HIV-infected patients. The common organisms isolated are:
 * Mycobacterium tuberculosis which is the most common etiology for pericardial effusion in African HIV-infected patients
 * Staphylococcus aureus
 * Cryptococcus neoformans
 * Herpes simplex

Supportive trial data:
 * A retrospective study of 29 patients with AIDS-related pericardial effusion who underwent fluid cultures and pericardial biopsy, etiology was established only in 7% patients. The causes included:
 * Mycobacterium tuberculosis (1%),
 * Staphylococcus aureus(1%), and
 * Neoplasms (2% adenocarcinoma and 3% lymphoma)


 * Another study that evaluated pericardial effusions in 17 patients with HIV, revealed etiologic evidence in 5 patients of which 2 were found to have lymphoma, and 1 each had staphylococcus aureus, mycobacterium tuberculosis, and fungal infection.