Cardiac tamponade by peripherally inserted central catheter in preterm infants: role of bedside ultrasonography and therapeutic approach.

Objective: to determine the incidence of pericardial effusion with cardiac tamponade in preterm infants in a pediatric intensive care unit, with emphasis on the relationship between pericardial effusion and peripherally inserted central catheter, and to evaluate the role of bedside ultrasound in approaching these cases.

Methods: we conducted a retrospective analysis of patients admitted to a pediatric intensive care unit between July 2014 and December 2016, who presented pericardial effusion with hemodynamic repercussion, evaluated by ultrasonography.

Results: we studied 426 patients admitted to the five beds of the neonatal unit.