COVID-19 and myocardial injury

| 2 November 2020 | In this multicenter cohort study (7 hospitals in New York City and Milan) the authors analyzed hospitalized COVID-19 patients who had undergone transthoracic echocardiographic (TTE) and electrocardiographic evaluation during their index hospitalization. Myocardial injury was defined as any elevation in cardiac troponin at the time of clinical presentation or during the hospitalization. Overall, myocardial injury was observed in 190 patients (62.3%). Among patients with COVID-19 who underwent TTE, cardiac structural abnormalities were present in nearly two-thirds of patients with myocardial injury. Rates of in-hospital mortality were 5.2%, 18.6%, and 31.7% in patients without myocardial injury, with myocardial injury without TTE abnormalities, and with myocardial injury and TTE abnormalities.

Giustino G, Croft LB, Stefanini GG, et al. Characterization of Myocardial Injury in Patients With COVID-19. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2020 Nov 3;76(18):2043-2055. PubMed: https://pubmed.gov/33121710. Full-text: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacc.2020.08.069