COVID-19: Cardiovascular involvement without pulmonary signs / COVID-19: Envolvimento cardiovascular sem sinais pulmonares

ABSTRACT

Resume Acute respiratory infections, including influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, and bacterial pneumonias, are well-recognized triggers for cardiovascular diseases (CVD), and the underlying CVD can lead to a worse prognosis for such infections. Abstract Keywords E(chocardiography, Cardiac magnetic resonance, Computed tomography, Pericardial effusion. Both SARS and middle east respiratory syndrome, viruses with similarities to COVID-19, have shown deleterious effects on the cardiovascular system. We can mention arrhythmias (bradycardias and tachycardias), changes in diastolic function, transient cardiomegaly, hypotension, myocarditis, pericardial effusion and acute coronary syndrome. The SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) infection causes a severe respiratory illness with many epidemiologic, clinical, radiologic, and laboratory findings. The 3 most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, cough, and shortness of breath, but we can have muscle pain, anorexia, malaise, sore throat, nasal congestion, dyspnea, and headache [1]. COVID-19 apparently affects the myocardium causing myocarditis. It is reasonable to expect that advanced and critical cases have more severe effects on the cardiovascular system due to more intense inflammatory response. Some severe myocarditis with reduced systolic function has been reported after COVID-19, and is an important prognostic factor. Cardiac biomarker studies suggest a high prevalence of cardiac injury in hospitalized patients. Presence of any grade of cardiac injury, myocarditis, and ARDS are strong and independent factors associated with high mortality. Pericarditis is not described in the literature till now, but we have cases with pericardial effusion leading to tamponade