COVID-19 Myocarditis: An Emerging Clinical Conundrum

Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been a significant cause of global mortality and morbidity since it was first reported in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. COVID19 like previous coronaviruses primarily affects the lungs causing pneumonia, interstitial pneumonitis, and severe acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). However, there is increasing evidence linking COVID-19 to cardiovascular complications such as arrhythmias, heart failure, cardiogenic shock, fulminant myocarditis, and cardiac death. Given the novelty of this virus, there is paucity of data on some cardiovascular complications of COVID-19, specifically myocarditis. Myocarditis is an inflammatory disease of the heart muscle with a heterogenous clinical presentation and progression. It is mostly caused by viral infections and is the result of interaction of the virus and the host's immune system. There have been several case reports linking COVID19 with myocarditis, however the true mechanism of cardiac injury remains under investigation. In this paper we review the clinical presentation, proposed pathophysiology, differential diagnoses and management of myocarditis in COVID-19 patients. (Curr Probl Cardiol 2022;47:101268.)

Automated summary

COVID-19 not only affects the lungs but also has potential cardiovascular complications, such as arrhythmias, heart failure, and myocarditis. Myocarditis is an inflammatory disease of the heart muscle, often caused by viral infections and resulting from the interaction between the virus and the host's immune system. Although several reports have linked COVID-19 with myocarditis, the exact mechanism of cardiac injury is still under investigation.