Role of Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Assessment of Cardiovascular Abnormalities in Patients with Coronavirus Disease 2019: Our Experience and Review of Literature

Abstract

Background: Long-term effects of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) causing pulmonary fibrosis are a well-established fact. Whether similar changes persist in myocardium remains a cause of concern. Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), although logistically limited during the acute phase of illness, is an excellent modality for evaluating persisting myocardial involvement in patients recovering from COVID-19. No previous study has described cardiac MRI in Indian patients with COVID-19. Materials and Methods: We summarize cardiac MRI findings in 43 patients (29 males) who underwent cardiac MRI at our center for various clinical indications after recovering from their COVID-19 episodes. All cardiac MRI examinations were performed on Siemens Verio 3 Tesla Scanner System with 70 cm bore. Necessary precautions and safety measures were taken as per the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance recommendations and standard imaging protocols were followed. Results: Half of all patients (22, 51.2%) had presented after 6 weeks of their initial COVID-19, whereas most of the remaining patients (19, 44.2%) underwent MRI during 3–6 weeks after recovering from COVID-19. Exercise intolerance was the most common clinical presentation observed in 22 (51.2%) patients, followed by fatigue or generalized weakness (15 patients), fast heart rate (12 patients), and breathlessness (12 patients). The most common cardiac MRI finding was elevated T1 and T2 mapping values (14 patients, 32.6%). The other common findings were late gadolinium enhancement in 12 (27.9%) patients, pericardial effusion ± enhancement in 12 (27.9%) patients, and impaired left ventricular systolic function in 9 (20.9%) patients. Eleven (25.6%) patients had normal cardiac MRI. Conclusions: Our findings summarize common cardiac abnormalities detected by cardiac MRI in patients with recent COVID-19. Although these results cannot be postulated to estimate the overall burden of cardiac involvement in COVID-19, they provide valuable insight into clinical spectrum of these patients in Indian scenario.