I recently went to the hospital with chest pains and was told that I hadn’t had a heart attack. Instead, my doctor said I had pericarditis. I’d like to hear from you about what that means and what the best treatment is.

The pericardium is the sack around the heart. In the normal state, it contains a small amount of fluid. It may play a role in keeping the heart from enlarging (dilating) when you have certain diseases, although it’s not clear what other purposes it serves. Pericarditis is inflammation of the pericardium. Viral infections are the most common causes. These are self-limiting, and don’t require specific treatment. Rarely, bacteria or…

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