Pericardial effusion is the collection of fluid in the pericardial cavity, surrounding the heart.
The pericardium is a thin walled sac containing the heart. With invasion by tumor, fluid builds up in the sac and presses on the heart. Best treatment of this problem is by removing a portion of the pericardium surgically, thus allowing the fluid to drain out of the sac, reducing the pressure in the pericardium. There are a number of techniques to do this. My preference is thoracoscopic pericardiotomy, a procedure performed under general anesthesia through three small incisions using video-assisted techniques.