Relation of severe eosinophilia and microfilariasis to chronic African endomyocardial fibrosis.

Abstract

SUMMARY Over a two-year period, 44 patients had an eosinophil count above the 97th centile. Thirteen of these 44 had heart disease presenting within six months of the onset of symptoms. Microfilariasis was the most likely cause of the raised total eosinophil in these 13 patients. In all, the raised eosinophil count was returned to normal by the use of diethylcarbamazine (Banocide). Eleven of the 13 were followed up and eight of them (73%) developed clinical features of cardiac constriction and tricuspid regurgitation.

Disseminated Microfilaremia Associated with Lung Cyst and Empyema: An Autopsy Report

“…The association between eosinophilia and EMF with eosinophilic hypersensitive myocarditis has been well documented in the literature [8,9]. The myocardium in the present case revealed features of eosinophilic hypersensitive myocarditis with EMF.…”

Endomyocardial complications of the Churg-Strauss syndrome

“…The advanced cardiac lesion of HES resembles endomyocardial fibrosis, yet the latter condition is not associated with eosinophilia. The enigmatic relationship between these two disorders has recently been clarified by a report on the late development of endomyocardial fibrosis in 13 of44 patients treated for microfilariasis associated with eosinophilia (Andy et al, 1981). In these cases, as in case 1, the cardiac lesion appeared months after the eosinophilic illness and the peripheral blood eosinophil count was not raised when the cardiac disease presented.…”

Endomyocardial Fibrosis

“…EMF might be a variant of the hypereosinophilic syndrome seen in temperate climate, since the late fibrotic lesions are identical for both diseases [17]. An inverse relationship between hypereosinophilia and the duration of EMF symptoms has been reported [18], suggesting that the eosinophil might be involved in earlier stages or in episodes of recrudescence and that fibrotic lesions would represent the end result of an acute eosinophilic endocardial injury.…”