SARS-CoV-2–Associated Myocarditis at Autopsy

Abstract

Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has been a major cause of mortality worldwide. While respiratory pathology seems to be the major mechanism of disease, cardiovascular pathology has increasingly been reported to play a role in adverse outcomes. A variety of different cardiovascular histopathologies have been reported at postmortem examination including myocarditis. Because of limited autopsy numbers and lack of standardized reporting of such cases, however, the prevalence of COVID-19 (2019 coronavirus disease)–associated myocarditis is unknown. The current autopsy case report illustrates how COVID-19 pulmonary pathology can be accompanied by right ventricular myocarditis. The discussion reviews the pathophysiology of myocarditis, as well as diagnostic strategies, adding to the growing body of literature describing myocarditis in association with COVID-19 disease.