| Abstrakt: |
Six patients with myocarditis documented by biopsy, after a baseline right heart catheterization and echocardiogram, underwent treatment with azathioprine and prednisone. After 3 months of treatment, biopsy, right heart catheterization and echocardiogram were repeated. In addition to the immunosuppressive therapy, most patients received additional conventional medications for heart failure between evaluation periods (mean number of cardiac drugs increased from 1.7 ± 1.0 to 2.7 ± 0.05, p = 0.041). Mean heart rate decreased (105 ± 14 to 84 ± 13 beats/min, p = 0.016), as did pulmonary wedge pressure (23 ± 8 to 12 ± 4 mm Hg, p = 0.012). There were no significant changes in cardiac index (3.1 ± 0.8 to 2.9 ± 1.0 liters/min), end-diastolic dimension (62 ± 13 to 62 ± 12 mm) or fractional shortening (11 ± 6 to 12 ± 3%) with treatment. Complications from immunosuppressive therapy included severe soft tissue infection, acute psychosis and adrenal insufficiency in one patient each. |
