Endomyocardial biopsy: safety and prognostic utility in paediatric and adult myocarditis in the European Society of Cardiology EURObservational Research Programme Cardiomyopathy and Myocarditis Long-Term Registry.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Contemporary multicentre data on clinical and diagnostic spectrum and outcome in myocarditis are limited. Study aims were to describe baseline features, 1-year follow-up, and baseline predictors of outcome in clinically suspected or biopsy-proven myocarditis (2013 European Society of Cardiology criteria) in adult and paediatric patients from the EURObservational Research Programme Cardiomyopathy and Myocarditis Long-Term Registry. METHODS: Five hundred eighty-one (68.0% male) patients, 493 adults, median age 38 (27-52) years, and 88 children, aged 8 (3-13) years, were divided into 3 groups: Group 1 (n = 233), clinically suspected myocarditis with abnormal cardiac magnetic resonance; Group 2 (n = 222), biopsy-proven myocarditis; and Group 3 (n = 126) clinically suspected myocarditis with normal or inconclusive or no cardiac magnetic resonance. Baseline features were analysed overall, in adults vs. children, and among groups. One-year outcome events included death/heart transplantation, ventricular assist device (VAD) or implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) implantation, and hospitalization for cardiac causes. RESULTS: Endomyocardial biopsy, mainly right ventricular, had a similarly low complication rate in children and adults (4.7% vs. 4.9%, P = NS), with no procedure-related death. A classical myocarditis pattern on cardiac magnetic resonance was found in 31.3% of children and in 57.9% of adults with biopsy-proven myocarditis (P < .001). At 1-year follow-up, 11/410 patients (2.7%) died, 7 (1.7%) received a heart transplant, 3 underwent VAD (0.7%), and 16 (3.9%) underwent ICD implantation. Independent predictors at diagnosis of death or heart transplantation or hospitalization or VAD implantation or ICD implantation at 1-year follow-up were lower left ventricular ejection fraction and the need for immunosuppressants for new myocarditis diagnosis refractory to non-aetiology-driven therapy. CONCLUSIONS: Endomyocardial biopsy was safe, and cardiac magnetic resonance using Lake Louise criteria was less sensitive, particularly in children. Virus-negative lymphocytic myocarditis was predominant both in children and adults, and use of immunosuppressive treatments was low. Lower left ventricular ejection fraction and the need for immunosuppressants at diagnosis were independent predictors of unfavourable outcome events at 1 year.

Clinically Suspected and Biopsy-Proven Myocarditis Temporally Associated with SARS-CoV-2 Infection.

We review current data on clinically suspected [European Society of Cardiology (ESC) 2013 criteria] and biopsy-proven [ESC and World Health Organization (WHO) criteria] myocarditis that is temporally associated with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection. ESC/WHO etiological diagnosis of viral myocarditis is based on histological and immunohistological evidence of nonischemic myocyte necrosis and monolymphocytic infiltration, i.e., myocarditis, plus the identification of a specific cardiotropic virus by molecular techniques, in particular polymerase chain reaction (PCR)/in-situ hybridization, on endomyocardial biopsy (EMB)/autopsy tissue. There is not yet definitive EMB/autopsy proof that SARS-CoV-2 causes direct cardiomyocyte damage in association with histological myocarditis. Clinical epidemiology data suggest that myocarditis is uncommon for both SARS-CoV-2-positive and -negative PCR cases. We hypothesize that the rare virus-negative biopsy-proven cases may represent new-onset immune-mediated or latent pre-existing autoimmune forms,triggered or fostered by the hyperinflammatory state of severe COVID-19. We recommend the application of the ESC/WHO definitions and diagnostic criteria in future reports to avoid low-quality scientific information leading to an inaccurate estimate of myocarditis incidence based on misdiagnosis.

Advances in the diagnosis of myocarditis in idiopathic inflammatory myopathies: an overview of diagnostic tests.

Cardiac involvement in idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) purports to worse clinical outcomes, and therefore early identification is important. Research has focused on blood biomarkers and basic investigations such as ECG and echocardiography, which have the advantage of wide availability and low cost but are limited in their sensitivity and specificity. Imaging the myocardium to directly look for inflammation and scarring has therefore been explored, with a number of new methods for doing this gaining wider research interest and clinical availability. Cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) with contemporary multiparametric mapping techniques and late gadolinium enhancement imaging, is an extremely valuable and increasingly used non-invasive imaging modality for the diagnosis of myocarditis. The recently updated CMR-based Lake Louise Criteria for the diagnosis of myocarditis incorporate the newer T1 and T2 mapping techniques, which have greatly improved the diagnostic accuracy for IIM myocarditis.18F-FDG-PET/CT is a well-utilized imaging modality in the diagnosis of malignancies in IIM, and it also has a role for the diagnosis of myocarditis in multiple systemic inflammatory diseases. Endomyocardial biopsy, however, remains the gold standard technique for the diagnosis of myocarditis and is necessary for the diagnosis of specific cases of myocarditis. This article provides an overview of the important tests and imaging modalities that clinicians should consider when faced with an IIM patient with potential myocarditis.

Intracardiac echocardiography-guided biopsies for right-sided intracardiac tumors: An optimized diagnostic algorithm and case illustrations.

Intracardiac tumors, though uncommon, necessitate a swift and accurate diagnosis for personalized treatment and prognosis estimation. While multi-modality imaging often determines the etiology of these cardiac masses, histological confirmation remains essential for definitive diagnosis and its specific treatment. Since cardiac tumors are often found in high-risk locations (ventricular free wall or atria), precision biopsy is paramount. The least invasive strategy would be to achieve this by means of endomyocardial biopsy (EMB); however real-time additional imaging is essential to reduce the risk of perforation/tamponade and to minimize sampling error. Intracardiac echocardiography (ICE) emerges as an excellent tool to achieve this goal preventing procedural complications and reducing the likelihood of sampling errors obtaining a definitive histopathological diagnosis in all cases. This paper outlines our diagnostic algorithm for optimal patient selection, details three illustrative cases, and elucidates the steps to acquire histopathology via percutaneous transvenous biopsy with ICE guidance in patients with right-sided cardiac tumors. Given the rarity of intracardiac tumors, we advocate these patients be managed by a dedicated multidisciplinary cardio-oncology team including an interventional cardiologist.

A retrospective analysis of anticoagulant safety among heart transplant recipients undergoing endomyocardial biopsy.

BACKGROUND: Transvenous endomyocardial biopsy is an invasive procedure which is used to diagnose rejection following an orthotopic heart transplant. Endomyocardial biopsy is widely regarded as low risk with all-cause complication rates below 5% in most safety studies. Following transplant, some patients require therapeutic anticoagulation. It is unknown whether anticoagulation increases endomyocardial biopsy bleeding risk. METHODS: Records from 2061 endomyocardial biopsies performed for post-transplant rejection surveillance at our institution between November 2016 and August 2022 were reviewed. Bleeding complications were defined as vascular access-related hematoma or bleeding, procedure-related red blood cell transfusion, and new pericardial effusion. Relative risk and small sample-adjusted 95% confidence interval was calculated to investigate the association between bleeding complications and anticoagulation. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: The overall risk of bleeding was 1.2% (25/2061 cases). There was a statistically significant increase in bleeding among patients on intravenous (RR 4.46, CI 1.09-18.32) but not oral anticoagulants (RR .62, CI .15-2.63) compared to patients without anticoagulant exposure. There was a trend toward increased bleeding among patients taking warfarin with INR ≥ 1.8 (RR 3.74, CI .90-15.43). Importantly, no bleeding events occurred in patients taking direct oral anticoagulants such as apixaban. Based on these results, intravenous rather than oral anticoagulation was associated with a significantly higher risk of bleeding complications following endomyocardial biopsy.

Comparison of diagnostic algorithms in clinically suspected viral myocarditis: Agreement between cardiovascular magnetic resonance, endomyocardial biopsy, and troponin T.

AIMS: Myocardial inflammation is increasingly detected noninvasively by tissue mapping with cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR). Intraindividual agreement with endomyocardial biopsy (EMB) or markers of myocardial injury, high-sensitive cardiac troponin (hs-cTnT) in patients with clinically suspected viral myocarditis is incompletely understood. METHODS: Prospective multicenter study of consecutive patients with clinically suspected myocarditis who underwent blood testing for hs-cTnT, CMR, and EMB as a part of diagnostic workup. EMB was considered positive based on immunohistological criteria in line with the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) definitions. CMR diagnoses employed tissue mapping using sequence-specific cut-off for native T1 and T2 mapping; active inflammation was defined as T1 ≥2 standard deviation (SD) and T2 ≥2 SD above the mean of normal range. Hs-cTnT of greater than 13.9 ng/L was considered significant. RESULTS: A total of 114 patients (age (mean ± SD) 54 ± 16, 65% males) were included, of which 79 (69%) had positive EMB criteria, 64 (56%) CMR criteria, and a total of 58 (51%) positive troponin. Agreement between EMB and CMR diagnostic criteria was poor (CMR vs ESC: area under the curve (AUC): 0.51 (0.39-0.62)). The agreement between a significant hs-cTnT rise and CMR-based diagnosis of myocarditis was good (AUC: 0.84 (0.68-0.92); p < 0.001), but poor for EMB (0.50 (0.40-0.61). Hs-cTnT was significantly associated with native T1 and T2, high-sensitive C-reactive protein, and N-terminal pro-hormone brain natriuretic peptide (r = 0.37, r = 0.35, r = 0.30, r = 0.25; p < 0.001), but not immunohistochemical criteria or viral presence. CONCLUSION: In clinically suspected viral myocarditis, all diagnostic approaches reflect the pathophysiological elements of myocardial inflammation; however, the differing underlying drivers only partially overlap. The EMB and CMR diagnostic algorithms are neither interchangeable in terms of interpretation of myocardial inflammation nor in their relationship with myocardial injury.

New-onset heart failure in infants: when the aetiological diagnosis becomes a challenge.

This study aimed to report the findings of cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) with quantitative mappings in infants presenting with new-onset heart failure, as well as to assess the capabilities of endomyocardial biopsy (EMB) and CMR in detecting inflammatory cardiomyopathies and determining their etiology. In a prospective analysis of infants who underwent CMR with tissue mappings, EMB, and genetic testing, the sample was categorized into two groups: those with inflammatory cardiomyopathy and negative genetics (indicative of possible myocarditis) and those with positive genetics (indicative of possible dilated cardiomyopathy). All patients exhibited similar clinical presentations, echocardiographic dysfunction, and elevated troponins and NT-proBNP levels. Additionally, they all met the diagnostic criteria for inflammatory cardiomyopathy based on EMB findings (≥14 mononuclear cells, ≥7 T-lymphocytes/mm2). EMB results unveiled significant differences in the presence of inflammation and edema between the two groups, with higher troponin levels correlating with increased inflammation. Notably, when focusing on CMR, neither the classic criteria nor the 2018 Lake Louise criteria (LLC) could effectively differentiate between the two groups. Only late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) appeared to be associated with myocarditis in this cohort, while other LLC and tissue mappings did not exhibit a similar correlation. Importantly, there was no observed correlation between the inflammation detected through EMB and CMR. CONCLUSIONS: The onset of heart dysfunction in infants can result from either inherited factors or viral infections, both of which may involve inflammation. However, the precise role of EMB and CMR in determining the etiology of such cases remains poorly defined. While CMR demonstrates high sensitivity in detecting inflammation, our experience suggests that it may not effectively differentiate between these two groups. A comprehensive diagnostic approach is essential when addressing this challenge, which includes considering EMB (with attention to the number of T-lymphocytes and the presence of oedema), specific CMR criteria, notably LGE and tissue mappings, as well as the identification of viral agents in cardiac tissue and troponin levels. Additionally, genetic tests should be conducted when evaluating these patients. WHAT IS KNOWN: • EMB is the gold standard diagnostic test for myocarditis but it is not universally accepted. • The diagnostic value of the 2018-LLC in pediatric patients is still undefined. WHAT IS NEW: • Both EMB and CMR may show inflammation in infants with new-onset heart failure of any aetiology. • A global approach should be used when facing this diagnostic challenge, including the EMB (number of T-lymphocytes and oedema), some CMR criteria, specially LGE and mappings, the detection of viral agents in cardiac tissue and troponins. Genetic tests should also be performed when studying these patients.

A Case of Abnormal Right Ventricular Color-Flow Doppler Jet.

Transthoracic echocardiography is used routinely during the follow-up after heart transplant surgery to screen possible complications and adverse events such as rejection. It often results in incidental findings that bring diagnostic challenges for sonographers. This E-challenge shows a Doppler flow abnormality associated with a rare cardiovascular diagnosis. Its physiopathology and its association with echocardiography findings are reviewed.

Fulminant myocarditis proven by early biopsy and outcomes.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: While endomyocardial biopsy (EMB) is recommended in adult patients with fulminant myocarditis, the clinical impact of its timing is still unclear. METHODS: Data were collected from 419 adult patients with clinically suspected fulminant myocarditis admitted to intensive care units across 36 tertiary centres in 15 countries worldwide. The diagnosis of myocarditis was histologically proven in 210 (50%) patients, either by EMB (n = 183, 44%) or by autopsy/explanted heart examination (n = 27, 6%), and clinically suspected cardiac magnetic resonance imaging confirmed in 96 (23%) patients. The primary outcome of survival free of heart transplantation (HTx) or left ventricular assist device (LVAD) at 1 year was specifically compared between patients with early EMB (within 2 days after intensive care unit admission, n = 103) and delayed EMB (n = 80). A propensity score-weighted analysis was done to control for confounders. RESULTS: Median age on admission was 40 (29-52) years, and 322 (77%) patients received temporary mechanical circulatory support. A total of 273 (65%) patients survived without HTx/LVAD. The primary outcome was significantly different between patients with early and delayed EMB (70% vs. 49%, P = .004). After propensity score weighting, the early EMB group still significantly differed from the delayed EMB group in terms of survival free of HTx/LVAD (63% vs. 40%, P = .021). Moreover, early EMB was independently associated with a lower rate of death or HTx/LVAD at 1 year (odds ratio of 0.44; 95% confidence interval: 0.22-0.86; P = .016). CONCLUSIONS: Endomyocardial biopsy should be broadly and promptly used in patients admitted to the intensive care unit for clinically suspected fulminant myocarditis.

Histopathological and Immunohistochemical Characteristics of Different Types of Cardiac Amyloidosis.

Cardiac involvement is the most important factor determining prognosis in patients with systemic amyloidosis. This retrospective observational study of 98 patients with amyloidosis was undertaken to assess the amyloid types that are most likely to affect the heart, describe histopathological and clinical features of cardiac amyloidosis, and estimate the number of cases not diagnosed clinically prior to death. All cases were divided into two groups based on the method of examination. The first group included 46 patients with cardiac amyloidosis revealed via endomyocardial biopsies (EMBs), and the second group included 52 amyloidosis patients who did not undergo EMBs, in whom cardiac involvement was identified only at autopsy. The EMBs demonstrated that AL amyloidosis was detected in 21 (46%) specimens, ATTR amyloid in 24 cases (52%), and AA amyloid in 1 case (2%). The autopsy reports defined 15 (46%) cases of AL amyloidosis, 21 (40%) of ATTR and 16 (31%) of AA amyloidosis. It should be noted that a clinical diagnosis of ATTR amyloidosis was made only in 9.5% of patients from the autopsy group, suggesting that ATTR may be an underdiagnosed cause of heart failure in elderly patients. The most intense amyloid deposits were determined in biopsy and autopsy specimens of patients with AL kappa amyloidosis, underlying a poorer prognosis.

Epstein-Barr Virus Lytic Transcripts Correlate with the Degree of Myocardial Inflammation in Heart Failure Patients.

The Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is frequently found in endomyocardial biopsies (EMBs) from patients with heart failure, but the detection of EBV-specific DNA has not been associated with progressive hemodynamic deterioration. In this paper, we investigate the use of targeted next-generation sequencing (NGS) to detect EBV transcripts and their correlation with myocardial inflammation in EBV-positive patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF). Forty-four HFrEF patients with positive EBV DNA detection and varying degrees of myocardial inflammation were selected. EBV-specific transcripts from EMBs were enriched using a custom hybridization capture-based workflow and, subsequently, sequenced by NGS. The short-read sequencing revealed the presence of EBV-specific transcripts in 17 patients, of which 11 had only latent EBV genes and 6 presented with lytic transcription. The immunohistochemical staining for CD3+ T lymphocytes showed a significant increase in the degree of myocardial inflammation in the presence of EBV lytic transcripts, suggesting a possible influence on the clinical course. These results imply the important role of EBV lytic transcripts in the pathogenesis of inflammatory heart disease and emphasize the applicability of targeted NGS in EMB diagnostics as a basis for specific treatment.

Physician Radiation Exposure During Endomyocardial Biopsy and Right Heart Catheterization.

BACKGROUND: Cardiologists performing coronary angiography (CA) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) are at risk of health problems related to chronic occupational radiation exposure. Unlike during CA and PCI, physician radiation exposure during right heart catheterization (RHC) and endomyocardial biopsy (EMB) has not been adequately studied. The objective of this study was to assess physicians' radiation doses during RHC with and without EMB and compare them to those of CA and PCI. METHODS: Procedural head-level physician radiation doses were collected by real-time dosimeters. Radiation-dose metrics (fluoroscopy time, air kerma [AK] and dose area product [DAP]), and physician-level radiation doses were compared among RHC, RHC with EMB, CA, and PCI. RESULTS: Included in the study were 351 cardiac catheterization procedures. Of these, 36 (10.3%) were RHC, 42 (12%) RHC with EMB, 156 (44.4%) CA, and 117 (33.3%) PCI. RHC with EMB and CA had similar fluoroscopy time. AK and DAP were progressively higher for RHC, RHC with EMB, CA, and PCI. Head-level physician radiation doses were similar for RHC with EMB vs CA (P = 0.07). When physicians' radiation doses were normalized to DAP, RHC and RHC with EMB had the highest doses. CONCLUSION: Physicians' head-level radiation doses during RHC with EMB were similar to those of CA. After normalizing to DAP, RHC and RHC with EMB were associated with significantly higher physician radiation doses than CA or PCI. These observations suggest that additional protective measures should be undertaken to decrease physicians' radiation exposure during RHC and, in particular, RHC with EMB.

Endomyocardial biopsy in the clinical context: current indications and challenging scenarios.

Endomyocardial biopsy (EMB) is an invasive procedure originally developed for the monitoring of heart transplant rejection. Over the year, this procedure has gained a fundamental complementary role in the diagnostic work-up of several cardiac disorders, including cardiomyopathies, myocarditis, drug-related cardiotoxicity, amyloidosis, other infiltrative and storage disorders, and cardiac tumours. Major advances in EMB equipment and techniques for histological analysis have significantly improved diagnostic accuracy of EMB. In recent years, advanced imaging modalities such as echocardiography with three-dimensional and myocardial strain analysis, cardiac magnetic resonance and bone scintigraphy have transformed the non-invasive approach to diagnosis and prognostic stratification of several cardiac diseases. Therefore, it emerges the need to re-define the current role of EMB for diagnostic work-up and management of cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this review is to summarize current knowledge on EMB in light of the most recent evidences and to discuss current indications, including challenging scenarios encountered in clinical practice.

Short-term clinical outcomes and predicted cost savings of dd-cfDNA-led surveillance after pediatric heart transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Endomyocardial biopsy (EMB)-led surveillance is common after pediatric heart transplantation (HT), with some centers performing periodic surveillance EMBs indefinitely after HT. Donor derived cell-free DNA (dd-cfDNA)-led surveillance offers an alternative, but knowledge about its clinical and economic outcomes, both key drivers of potential utilization, are lacking. METHODS: Using single-center recipient and center-level data, we describe clinical outcomes prior to and since transition from EMB-led surveillance to dd-cfDNA-led surveillance of pediatric and young adult HT recipients. These data were then used to inform Markov models to compare costs between EMB-led and dd-cfDNA-led surveillance strategies. RESULTS: Over 34.5 months, dd-cfDNA-led surveillance decreased the number of EMBs by 81.8% (95% CI 76.3%-86.5%) among 120 HT recipients (median age 13.3 years). There were no differences in the incidences of graft loss or death among all recipients followed at our center prior to and following implementation of dd-cfDNA-led surveillance (graft loss: 2.9 vs. 1.5 per 100 patient-years; p = .17; mortality: 3.7 vs. 2.2 per 100 patient-years; p = .23). Over 20 years from HT, dd-cfDNA-led surveillance is projected to cost $8545 less than EMB-led surveillance. Model findings were robust in sensitivity and scenario analyses, with cost of EMB, cost of dd-cfDNA testing, and probability of elevated dd-cfDNA most influential on model findings. CONCLUSIONS: dd-cfDNA-led surveillance shows promise as a less invasive and cost saving alternative to EMB-led surveillance among pediatric and young adult HT recipients.

The utilization of molecular microscope in management of heart transplant recipients in the era of noninvasive monitoring.

INTRODUCTION: Monitoring for graft rejection is a fundamental tenet of post-transplant follow-up. In heart transplantation (HT) in particular, rejection has been traditionally assessed with endomyocardial biopsy (EMB). EMB has potential complications and noted limitations, including interobserver variability in interpretation. Additional tests, such as basic cardiac biomarkers, cardiac imaging, gene expression profiling (GEP) scores, donor-derived cell-free DNA (dd-cfDNA) and the novel molecular microscope diagnostic system (MMDx) have become critical tools in rejection surveillance beyond standard EMB. METHODS: This paper describes an illustrative case followed by a review of MMDx within the context of other noninvasive screening modalities for rejection. CONCLUSIONS: We suggest MMDx be used to assist with early detection of rejection in cases of discordance between EMB and other noninvasive studies.

Unsupervised mRNA-seq classification of heart transplant endomyocardial biopsies.

BACKGROUND: Endomyocardial biopsy (EMB) is currently considered the gold standard for diagnosing cardiac allograft rejection. However, significant limitations related to histological interpretation variability are well-recognized. We sought to develop a methodology to evaluate EMB solely based on gene expression, without relying on histology interpretation. METHODS: Sixty-four EMBs were obtained from 47 post-heart transplant recipients, who were evaluated for allograft rejection. EMBs were subjected to mRNA sequencing, in which an unsupervised classification algorithm was used to identify the molecular signatures that best classified the EMBs. Cytokine and natriuretic peptide peripheral blood profiling was also performed. Subsequently, we performed gene network analysis to identify the gene modules and gene ontology to understand their biological relevance. We correlated our findings with the unsupervised and histological classifications. RESULTS: Our algorithm classifies EMBs into three categories based solely on clusters of gene expression: unsupervised classes 1, 2, and 3. Unsupervised and histological classifications were closely related, with stronger gene module-phenotype correlations for the unsupervised classes. Gene ontology enrichment analysis revealed processes impacting on the regulation of cardiac and mitochondrial function, immune response, and tissue injury response. Significant levels of cytokines and natriuretic peptides were detected following the unsupervised classification. CONCLUSION: We have developed an unsupervised algorithm that classifies EMBs into three distinct categories, without relying on histology interpretation. These categories were highly correlated with mitochondrial, immune, and tissue injury response. Significant cytokine and natriuretic peptide levels were detected within the unsupervised classification. If further validated, the unsupervised classification could offer a more objective EMB evaluation.

Comparison of two donor-derived cell-free DNA tests and a blood gene-expression profile test in heart transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Donor-derived cell-free DNA (dd-cfDNA) testing is an emerging screening modality for noninvasive detection of acute rejection (AR). This study compared the testing accuracy for AR of two commercially available dd-cfDNA and gene-expression profiling (GEP) testing in heart transplant (HTx) recipients. METHODS: This is a retrospective, observational study of HTx only patients who underwent standard and expanded single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) dd-cfDNA between October 2020 to January 2022. Comparison with GEP was also performed. Assays were compared for correlation, accurate classification, and prediction for AR. RESULTS: A total of 428 samples from 112 unique HTx patients were used for the study. A positive standard SNP correlated with the expanded SNP assay (p < .001). Both standard and expanded SNP tests showed low sensitivity (39%, p = 1.0) but high specificity (82% and 84%, p = 1.0) for AR. GEP did not improve sensitivity and showed worse specificity (p < .001) compared to standard dd-cfDNA. CONCLUSION: We found no significant difference between standard and expanded SNP assays in detecting AR. We show improved specificity without change in sensitivity using dd-cfDNA in place of GEP testing. Prospective controlled studies to address how to best implement dd-cfDNA testing into clinical practice are needed.

Cardiac magnetic resonance in histologically proven eosinophilic myocarditis.

BACKGROUND: Eosinophilic myocarditis (EM) is a life-threatening acute heart disease. Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) excels in the assessment of myocardial diseases but CMR studies of EM are limited. We aimed to describe CMR findings in histologically proven EM. METHODS: Patients with histologically proven EM seen at an academic center from 2000 through 2020 were identified. Of the 28 patients ascertained, 15 had undergone CMR for diagnosis and constitute our study cohort. RESULTS: The patients, aged 51 ± 17 years, presented with fever (53%), dyspnea (47%), chest pain (53%), heart block (20%), and blood eosinophilia (60%). On CMR, all 15 patients had myocardial edema with 10 of them (67%) having abnormally high left ventricular (LV) mass as well. LV ejection fraction measured < 50% in 11 patients (73%) and < 30% in 2 (13%), but only 6 (40%) had dilated LV size. Eight patients (53%) had pericardial effusion. LV late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) was found in all but one patient (13/14; 93%). LGE was always multifocal and subendocardial but could involve any myocardial layer. Patients with necrotizing EM by histopathology (n = 6) had higher LGE mass (32.1 ± 16.6% vs 14.5 ± 7.7%, p = 0.050) and more LV segments with LGE (15 ± 2 vs 9 ± 3 out of 17, p = 0.003) than patients (n = 9) without myocyte necrosis. Two patients had LV thrombosis accompanying widespread subendocardial LGE. CONCLUSIONS: In EM, CMR shows myocardial edema and LGE that is typically subendocardial but can involve any myocardial layer. The left ventricle is often non-dilated with moderate-to-severe systolic dysfunction. Pericardial effusion is common. Necrotizing EM presents with extensive myocardial LGE on CMR.

A case of disappearing amyloid on technetium pyrophosphate scan.

Technetium-99mm pyrophosphate (Tc-PYP) scintigraphy is a highly accurate non-invasive method for the diagnosis of transthyretin (ATTR) cardiac amyloidosis. Prognosis for this disease is improved following treatment with the transthyretin (TTR) stabilizer tafamidis. Although tafamidis slows disease progression, its effects on myocardial amyloid and Tc-PYP uptake remain unclear. We present a patient with ATTR cardiac amyloidosis who had a strongly positive initial Tc-PYP scan, with a dramatic decrease in Tc-PYP uptake on repeat scan after 3 years of tafamidis treatment. However, myocardial biopsy showed persistent diffuse amyloid deposits. This case highlights the need for further studies regarding the utility of serial Tc-PYP scans in monitoring the progress of ATTR cardiomyopathy.

Elective and non-elective endomyocardial biopsy in heart transplant patients and procedural outcomes: An IMPACT registry analysis.

BACKGROUND: Endomyocardial biopsies are standard of care for transplant surveillance, however the procedural risks are not well established, especially in children. The purpose of the study was therefore to assess procedural risks and outcomes associated with elective (surveillance) biopsies and non-elective (clinically indicated) biopsies. METHODS: We used the NCDR IMPACT registry database for this retrospective analysis. Patients undergoing an endomyocardial biopsy were identified using the procedural code, with a diagnosis of heart transplantation required. Data regarding indication, hemodynamics, adverse events and outcomes was gathered and analyzed. RESULTS: A total of 32 547 endomyocardial biopsies were performed between 2012-2020; 31 298 (96.5%) elective and 1133 (3.5%) were non-elective biopsies. Non-elective biopsy was more commonly performed in infants and in those above 18 years of age, in female and in Black race patients and in those with non-private insurance (all p < .05) and showed hemodynamic derangements. Overall rate of complications was low. Combined major adverse events were more common in non-elective patients, with sicker patient profile, use of general anesthesia and femoral access with overall decline in these events over time. CONCLUSIONS: This large-scale analysis shows safety of surveillance biopsies and that non-elective biopsies carry a small but significant risk of major adverse event. Patient profile impacts the safety of the procedure. These data may serve as important comparison point for newer non-invasive tests and for bench marking, especially in children.