# Acute graft rejection mimicking constrictive pericarditis after heart transplantation. A case report

## TL;DR

A heart transplant patient showed symptoms of constrictive pericarditis, but it was actually due to acute graft rejection.

## Contribution

This case report highlights a rare misdiagnosis of acute graft rejection as constrictive pericarditis after heart transplantation.

## Key findings

- A 43-year-old male with a history of heart transplantation presented with symptoms of right-sided heart failure.
- Initial diagnosis of constrictive pericarditis was later found to be acute graft rejection.

## Abstract

Constrictive pericarditis (CP) is an infrequent complication following heart transplantation (HTx) and arises from diverse postoperative occurrences, including mediastinitis, pericardial effusion, or allograft rejection. Indeed, this rare clinical entity can be misdiagnosed as a rejection episode or restrictive cardiomyopathy. In this report, we present the case of a 43-year-old male who underwent HTx 1.5 years prior and was subsequently admitted to our center due to the gradual onset of symptoms indicative of right congestive heart failure, with an initial diagnosis of constrictive pericarditis.