Open AccessIncidence, Clinical Presentation, and Management of Myocarditis following mRNA-Based Covid-19 Vaccines: A Brief Report
Author(s) -
Sahrai Saeed,
Lauri Käsk,
Ronak Rajani,
Terje H. Larsen
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
cardiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.547
H-Index - 63
eISSN - 1421-9751
pISSN - 0008-6312
DOI - 10.1159/000522216
Subject(s) - medicine , myocarditis , vaccination , pericarditis , incidence (geometry) , covid-19 , presentation (obstetrics) , intensive care medicine , cardiology , immunology , surgery , disease , physics , infectious disease (medical specialty) , optics
Background: Recent surveillance studies following nationwide mass vaccination are investigating rare complications such as myocarditis, pericarditis and thromboembolic events related to mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines. Summary: In the current report, we present an overview of the incidence, clinical presentation and management of post-mRNA vaccine myocarditis and pericarditis in view of the currently available data. Our main focus is directed towards myocarditis. Key messages: Myocarditis following mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccines is rare, more frequently affects younger men <30 years and is usually of mild severity with spontaneous recovery. The overall benefit of mRNA vaccines in terms of protecting from severe Covid-19 infection and associated cardiovascular complications outweighs the risk of post-vaccination myocarditis. Currently, there are no dedicated guidelines for patients with post-vaccination myocarditis or pericarditis in terms of the frequency of follow-up including clinical assessment and a repeated echocardiography and cardiac resonance imaging. However, follow-up studies in terms of long-term consequences are underway.