Letters to the Editor: Pericarditis as an initial symptom in Takayasu arteritis

Takayasu arteritis (TA) is a chronic inflammatory vasculitis with unknown etiology, affecting the large and medium sized arteries with a striking predilection for aorta and its major branches. Because of the non specific initial clinical presentation, the disease remains undiagnosed for a long period of time. Cardiac manifestations in TA are rarely reported in the literature. They determine the disease prognosis. Pericardial effusion was rarely reported in TA, and is exceptionally the first manifestation. We report a case, of TA presented initially with acute pericardial effusion.