MRCP UK EXAMINATIONS

Detailed explanation-1: -An audible friction rub, which has been shown to be present in 85% of patients at some time during the course of their disease, 3 is highly specific for pericarditis. A pericardial friction rub is usually a high-pitched, scratchy or squeaky sound heard best at the left sternal border.

Detailed explanation-2: -Physical examination-During the examination, the clinician will listen to the heart with a stethoscope. In people with pericarditis, there is often an abnormal heart sound called a pericardial friction rub.

Detailed explanation-3: -A pericardial friction rub is a grating, to-and-fro sound produced by friction of the heart against the pericardium. This sounds similar to sandpaper rubbed on wood. Such a sound usually indicates pericarditis. The intensity of the rub varies with the phase of the cardiac cycle rather than the respiratory cycle.

Detailed explanation-4: -A pericardial friction rub is the sound that is generated as a result of an inflamed pericardium. Rubs consist of one to three sounds that may be mistaken for murmurs. However, the quality of the sound(s) is different and distinctive, often scratchy or creaky.

Detailed explanation-5: -Pleural friction rubs need to be distinguished from pericardial friction rubs, which is a sign of pericarditis.