Type of Surgery
Information
Last updated: 02/17/2009
A procedure performed with a needle to remove fluid for diagnostic or therapeutic purposes from the tissue covering the heart (pericardial sac).
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Other Information
In medicine, pericardiocentesis is a procedure where fluid is aspirated from the pericardium (the sac enveloping the heart).
It is generally done under ultrasound guidance, to minimize complications. There are two locations that pericardiocentesis can be performed without puncturing the lungs.
One location is through the 5th or 6th intercostal space at the left sternal border at the cardiac notch of the left lung.
The other location is through the infrasternal angle.
Other Information
In 2006, 2,192 heart transplantations were performed in the United States. There are 257 transplant hospitals in the United States, 135 of which perform heart transplantations. (http://www.unos.org/)
From: Unos.org
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