Case of Healing Acute Exudative Pericarditis, March 9, 1995

Case of Healing Acute Exudative Pericarditis, March 9, 1995

In early spring of the Year of the Pig, a patient was seen at the Huicui Hall outpatient clinic. Diagnosed with exudative pericarditis at Lan Medical First Hospital, the patient was hospitalized for over two months with no obvious improvement. A total of 700 mL of fluid was drained in three sessions, but the effusion quickly accumulated again, with symptoms of chest tightness, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, and cyanosis remaining unchanged, prompting the patient to seek outpatient care. The pulse was large and slippery, so I prescribed Ma Xing Gan Shi Tang combined with Ling Gui Zhu Gan Tang, Ji Jiao Li Huang Wan, Ting Li Da Zao Xie Fei Tang plus additional ingredients such as big belly bark, mulberry bark, dandelion, houttuynia, honeysuckle, and Forsythia, along with Western medications like prednisone and methoxychloromycetin. After a total of 20 doses, the patient showed marked improvement, with noticeable relief of chest tightness and shortness of breath, and imaging revealed no more pericardial effusion.