Chronic constrictive pericarditis: a case report and review of the literature

• Actinomycosis is typically a chronic infection of the cervicofascial, thoracic, or abdominal region. Involvement of the heart occurs but is unusual. We present a case of chronic constrictive pericarditis caused by actinomycetes. The actinomycosis infection was present for 20 years, thereby representing the longest duration reported in the literature, to our knowledge. ( Arch Intern Med . 1989;149:1202-1203)