Myocarditis is a disorder with a wide range of symptoms spanning from light breathlessness or chest pain, ceasing without specific treatment, through cardiogenic shock, requiring left ventricular assistance, to sudden death. Dilated cardiomyopathy with chronic cardiac failure might be the very consequence of the precedent myocarditis. Myocarditis is the most frequently caused by viral infections, less frequently by specific infections, toxic or hypersensitivity reactions to medicines, giant cell myocarditis or sarcoidosis. Prognosis and treatment differ according to the cause, clinical or haemodynamic signs inform decision-making on care provided by cardiology centres, including decisions on execution and interpretation of myocardial biopsy. The present overview aims to provide practical guidance on diagnosis and treatment of myocardial inflammation.

1 interní kardio angiologická klinika Lékarské fakulty MU a FN u sv Anny Brno