COVID-19 Myocarditis Clinical Presentation, Diagnosis and Management: A Narrative Review

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this article is to review the cases of myocarditis in COVID-19 patients and synthesize the current understanding regarding the presentation, diagnosis, and management of myocarditis in the setting of COVID-19 disease. Background: The novel coronavirus disease has shown serious implications for the cardiovascular system, including acute myocardial injury, arrhythmias, venous thromboembolism, and myocarditis. Several cases of myocarditis in COVID-19 patients have been reported since the disease's emergence at the end of 2019. The diagnostic approach and management have been variable. The purpose of this narrative review is to gather the most reliable published material regarding myocarditis in COVID-19 and present it as an overview to simplify the current understanding we have of this disease. Methods: We screened PubMed, Scopus, and Embase. We then selected peer-reviewed and pre-print articles published in English that were related to the involvement of the cardiovascular system in COVID-19, with a focus on myocarditis. We included case reports describing myocarditis in COVID-19 patients and summarized their clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management. References of the selected articles were also screened, and some were included when relevant. Discussion: This article is subdivided into sections that discuss the clinical presentation of COVID-19 myocarditis and move on to various diagnostic approaches and management options. Each subsection presents a brief literature review followed by a summary and interpretation of what was found in the reported cases. Conclusion: After noticing the involvement of the cardiovascular system in COVID-19 patients, specifically through myocarditis, we present this narrative review to provide the medical community with a unified article regarding the current understanding of myocarditis in COVID-19 patients. This article further stresses the necessity of establishing proper treatment guidelines for COVID-19 myocarditis.

SARS, MERS, COVID-19: Identification of Patients at a Higher Risk: A Narrative Review

“…Conversely, COVID-19 could be the inciting factor of HF. Several articles, discussed previously, described the association between COVID-19 and myocarditis [7,8,18,21,22]. Cardiac injury secondary to myocarditis could predispose the patient to congestive HF [23].…”