Myocarditis - Overview
Alternative Names
Inflammation - heart muscle
Definition of Myocarditis:
Myocarditis is inflammation of the heart muscle.
See also: Pediatric myocarditis
Causes, incidence, and risk factors:
Myocarditis is an uncommon disorder that is usually caused by viral, bacterial, or fungal infections that reach the heart.
Viral infections:
Bacterial infections:
Fungal infections:
- Aspergillus
- Candida
- Coccidioides
- Cryptococcus
- Histoplasma
- Schistosomiasis
When you have an infection, your immune system produces special cells that release chemicals to fight off disease. If the infection affects your heart, the disease-fighting cells enter the heart. However, the chemicals produced by an immune response can damage the heart muscle. As a result, the heart can become thick, swollen, and weak. This leads to symptoms of heart failure.
Other causes of myocarditis may include:
- Allergic reactions to certain medications or toxins (alcohol, cocaine, certain chemotherapy drugs, heavy metals, and catecholamines)
- Being around certain chemicals
- Certain diseases that cause inflammation throughout the body (rheumatoid arthritis, sarcoidosis)
- Reviewed last on: 5/15/2008
- Alan Berger, MD, Assistant Professor, Divisions of Cardiology and Epidemiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.
References
Liu PP, Schultheiss HP. Myocarditis. In: Libby P, Bonow RO, Mann DL, Zipes DP. Libby: Braunwald's Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine. 8th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2007;chap 66.
