ABSTRACT
Background: Cardiovascular events, including pericarditis, myocarditis, and myocardial ischaemia, have been reported as complications following COVID-19 vaccination. Case summary: A 28-year-old Japanese woman diagnosed 10 years earlier with systemic lupus erythematosus and antiphospholipid syndrome was admitted to our hospital because of chest pain and Raynaud's phenomenon. She had received a second dose of the COVID-19 BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine 28 days earlier. 123I-ß-methyl iodophenyl pentadecanoic acid (BMIPP) and 201thallium dual myocardial single-photon emission computed tomography demonstrated mildly reduced perfusion of BMIPP in the mid-anterior wall of the left ventricle. Coronary angiography revealed normal coronary arteries; additionally, an endomyocardial biopsy was performed. Histopathological evaluation revealed a normal myocardium without cell infiltration. However, immunostaining for the severe acute respiratory coronavirus (SARS-CoV)/severe acute respiratory coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein was positive in the small intramural coronary arteries. The administration of azathioprine (50â mg/day) and amlodipine (5â mg/day) and increases in her prednisolone (10â mg/day) and aspirin doses led to improvements in the symptoms of the patient. Discussion: Our data lead us to speculate that two events in the timeline of the patient, namely, receiving COVID-19 vaccination and the presence of SARS-CoV/SARS-CoV-2 spike protein in small intramural coronary arteries, may be related to the myocardial microangiopathy observed in this patient.
ABSTRACT
A 19-year-old Japanese man was hospitalized for cardiogenic shock 28 days after receiving a second dose of the COVID-19 mRNA-1273 vaccine. He had had a high fever for three days with vomiting and abdominal pain before arriving at our hospital. The patient visited a local hospital and was diagnosed with heart failure and acute appendicitis. An endomyocardial biopsy specimen showed myocarditis. Thereafter, Impella CP left ventricular assist device implantation and venoarterial peripheral extracorporeal membranous oxygenation were initiated immediately along with inotropic support and steroid pulse therapy. Given these findings, he was finally diagnosed with multiple inflammatory syndrome and fulminant myocarditis.
ABSTRACT
A 60-year-old Japanese woman was hospitalized for cardiogenic shock 24 days after receiving the second dose of the coronavirus disease 2019 BNT162b2 vaccine. Impella CP left ventricular assist device implantation and venoarterial peripheral extracorporeal membranous oxygenation were immediately initiated along with inotropic support and steroid pulse therapy, as an endomyocardial biopsy specimen showed myocarditis. Three weeks later, her cardiac function had recovered, and she was discharged. An immune response associated with the presence of spike protein in cardiac myocytes may be related to myocarditis in the present case because of positive immunostaining for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 spike protein and C4d in the myocardium.
Subject(s)
BNT162 Vaccine , COVID-19 , Coronavirus , Heart-Assist Devices , Myocarditis , BNT162 Vaccine/adverse effects , COVID-19/complications , Female , Heart-Assist Devices/adverse effects , Humans , Middle Aged , Myocarditis/complications , RNA/therapeutic use , Shock, Cardiogenic/etiology , Spike Glycoprotein, CoronavirusABSTRACT
A 41-year-old Japanese man was admitted to our hospital with acute perimyocarditis 4 weeks after coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection. Ten days after admission, the patient showed bilateral facial nerve palsy in the course of improvement of perimyocarditis under treatment with aspirin and colchicine. After prednisolone therapy, perimyocarditis completely improved, and the facial nerve palsy gradually improved. Acute perimyocarditis and facial nerve palsy can occur even 4 weeks after contracting COVID-19.