Hostname: page-component-745bb68f8f-b95js Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-02-05T17:07:37.431Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Behind the curtain lies the truth: a case of arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy mistaken for COVID-19 vaccine-associated myocarditis

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 February 2025

Samantha Schaller ,
Tanya Perry Open the ORCID record for Tanya Perry [Opens in a new window] ,
Timothy Knilans ,
Juli Sublet-Smith ,
Sean Lang ,
Erin M. Miller  and
Angela Lorts
Samantha Schaller
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, The Heart Institute, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
Tanya Perry*
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, Northwell Health, Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra University, Division of Critical Care, Cohen Children’s Medical Center, New Hyde Park, NY, USA
Timothy Knilans
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, The Heart Institute, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
Juli Sublet-Smith
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, The Heart Institute, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
Sean Lang
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, The Heart Institute, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
Erin M. Miller
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, The Heart Institute, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
Angela Lorts
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, The Heart Institute, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
*
Corresponding author: Tanya Perry; Email: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

A 15-year-old male presented with vasovagal syncope and troponin leak 4 days after his second COVID-19 vaccine. Based on initial diagnostic work-up, he was thought to have COVID-19 vaccine-associated myocarditis. His cardiac dysfunction persisted and further work-up including genetic evaluation and serial MRI studies later confirmed a diagnosis of arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy. This is a unique case of an incorrect diagnosis based on timing and context of vaccine-related myocarditis. Reports of mild and self-limited myocarditis post-COVID-19 vaccination may cause vaccine hesitancy among the public, and so case reports such as this one show the importance of discerning underlying conditions amongst rare COVID-19 vaccination complications.

Keywords

COVID-19vaccine myocarditisarrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy
Type
Brief Report
Information
Cardiology in the Young , First View , pp. 1 - 3
Check for updates
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Costa, C, Moniati, F. The epidemiology of COVID-19 vaccine-induced myocarditis. Adv Med 2024; 2024: 4470326.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ferreira, VM, Schulz-Menger, J, Holmvang, G et al. Cardiovascular magnetic resonance in nonischemic Myocardial inflammation: expert recommendations. J Am Coll Cardiol 2018; 72: 3158–3176.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dalal, D, James, C, Devanagondi, R et al. Penetrance of mutations in plakophilin-2 among families with arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia/cardiomyopathy. J Am Coll Cardiol 2006; 48: 1416–1424.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Patone, M, Mei, XW, Handunnetthi, L et al. Risk of Myocarditis after sequential doses of COVID-19 Vaccine and SARS-CoV-2 infection by age and sex. Circulation 2022; 146: 743–754.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Truong, DT, Dionne, A, Muniz, JC et al. Clinically suspected myocarditis temporally related to COVID-19 vaccination in adolescents and young adults: suspected Myocarditis after COVID-19 Vaccination. Circulation 2022; 145: 345–356.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mevorach, D, Anis, E, Cedar, N et al. Myocarditis after BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine against Covid-19 in Israel. N Engl J Med 2021; 385: 2140–2149.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed