heart and blood vessel disorders
Acute Pericarditis
Treating the underlying disorder
Further treatment of acute pericarditis varies, depending on the cause. For people who have kidney failure, increasing the frequency of dialysis usually results in improvement. Drugs that may cause pericarditis are stopped whenever possible. People who have cancer may respond to chemotherapy or radiation therapy. If pericarditis that is caused by a virus, an injury, or an unidentified disorder recurs,aspirinoribuprofen, sometimes along withcolchicine, may provide relief. If these drugs do not help, doctors may give corticosteroids (as long as the cause was not an infection). The corticosteroids are sometimes injected into the pericardial space. If drug treatment is ineffective, doctors may remove the pericardium surgically. If a bacterial infection is the cause, treatment consists of antibiotics and surgical drainage of pus from the pericardium. 