SINGAPORE, July 17 — In May, Ms Lee Pei Hsia came down with a fever. What had initially looked like a viral infection led to a serious case of acute myocarditis, which is an...
SINGAPORE, July 17 — In May, Ms Lee Pei Hsia came down with a fever. What had initially looked like a viral infection led to a serious case of acute myocarditis, which is an inflammatory condition of the heart muscle.
Assistant Professor Louis Teo, senior consultant at the department of cardiology at National Heart Centre Singapore , explained that the Sars-Cov-2 coronavirus, which causes Covid-19, can directly infect the heart cells and damage them. “Young adults with robust immune system have an over-activation of the immune responses triggered by . This leads to the immune system self-attacking the heart muscle, causing myocarditis.”
The increase could be due to people getting myocarditis after being infected with Covid-19, he added. However, Asst Prof Teo from NHCS pointed out that the risk of developing myocarditis due to Covid-19 is “much higher” than the risk of getting myocarditis from a Covid-19 vaccine. In comparison, Asst Prof Teo said studies showed that the incidence of myocarditis is estimated to be 100 to 200 for every 100,000 people infected with Covid-19, although the reported incidence varies in different epidemiological studies in different countries.
However, many cases of myocarditis likely go undetected because they are asymptomatic or sub-clinical, meaning there are no symptoms, Dr Yong said. Excess fluid can build up in the body when the heart is not functioning well and does not pump blood as well as it should.Recounting her painful and frightening experience, the young mother said that her immediate thoughts were of her family. This was when her doctors prepared her for the possible scenarios of requiring a heart device or heart transplant.
For some, myocarditis can be fatal. A small group of patients may develop a sudden but uncommon form of myocarditis known as fulminant myocarditis, Asst Prof Teo said. Asst Prof Teo said that mild cases may not require drug therapy, but the more severe cases will need antivirals or antibiotics, immunosuppressive therapy to suppress the immune system, and heart failure drugs.
If heart function is permanently damaged, patients will need long-term mechanical heart support in the form of a left-ventricular assist device or a heart transplantation, Asst Prof Teo said. “My doctor said I’m one of the luckier cases who recovered fast. He mentioned seeing a teenage patient who required a heart transplantation.”
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