Myocarditis

Myocarditis is a type of heart disease that is the inflammation of myocardium. Myocardium is the part of the heart that has more muscles compared to other parts. Myocarditis is caused by infections that can be viral or bacterial. The usual signs of myocarditis are heart failure quickly, chest pain and sudden death. There are various kinds of heart diseases from which people suffer. The neglect and wrong diagnosis of the disease can ave fatal consequences and at times affects the other parts of the body as well. Any kind of symptoms should not be neglected. Expert help should always be taken when there is need. Heart diseases are rampant among those who lead an extremely stressful life that involves physical and mental stress. However there are other causes as well like genetic and congenital defects that cause heart disease. The signs and symptoms showed by individuals having myocarditis are usually varied.

People having myocarditis have signs like stabbing chest pains, palpitations that is caused by arrhythmias, congestive failure of the heart. The congestive heart failure leads to hepatic congestion, edema and a feeling of breathlessness. Myocarditis can also cause fever that is the rheumatic fever and sudden death at times. Myocarditis is most of the times caused by viral infections due to which there are symptoms like diarrhea, pain in the joints and extreme fatigue. Myocarditis is linked with pericarditis often. Many patients show signs and symptoms that points to concurrent myocarditis and pericarditis. There are many factors that leads to the formation of myocarditis in the heart. The factors causing myocarditis have been identified by experts.

Viral infections like the presence of viruses like enterovirus, Coxsackie virus, rubella virus, polio virus, cytomegalovirus, and hepatitis C can cause myocarditis. Bacterias like brucella, corynebacterium diphtheriae, gonococcus, haemophilus influenzae, actinomyces, tropheryma whipplei, and vibrio cholerae are the causes of myocarditis. Spirochetal like borrelia burgdorferi, leptospirosis and protozoal infection like toxoplasma gondii and trypanosoma cruzi are the causes of myocarditis. Parasites like Echinococcus granulosus, visceral larva migrans, Wuchereria bancrofti, schistosoma, Taenia solium and trichinella spiralis. Drugs too are the contributing factors in causing myocrditis. Drugs containing chemotherapy, ethanol, and antipsychotics can cause this heart disease along with toxins and heavy metals. Electric shock, hyperpyrexia, and radiation too causes the disease.

Myocardium can be diagnosed on the results of electrocardiographic results (ECG), elevated CRP and/or ESR and increased IgM (serology). Markers of myocardial damage (troponin or creatine kinase cardiac isoenzymes) are advanced. The ECG show the diffusion of the T wave inversions and the elevations of saddle-shaped ST-segment. These are also found in pericarditis. The best way to detect myocarditis is biopsy of the myocardium that can be done by angiography. The biopsy can be done by the tissue sample of the endocardium and myocardium. A pathologists tests it under light microscopy, immunochemistry and special staining methods. Histopathological features of myocardium are myocardial interstitium accompanied by edema and inflammatory infiltrate, with ample lymphocytes and macrophages. Focal destruction of myocytes are the reasons for failure of myocardial pump.

Endocarditis

Endocarditis

Endocarditis is the inflammation inside the layer of the heart, known as the endocardium. The heart valves are the most common portions of the heart that is involved. The classification of endocarditis is done by infection or non-infection. The cause depends entirely on the microorganism that has caused the problem. The valves in the heart do not get any blood supply of their own due to which the defense mechanisms in the blood (such as white blood cells) cannot enter the heart. It so happens that if an organism (like bacteria) gets inside the valves of the heart, the body is unable to get rid of them. There are many kinds of heart diseases from which there are millions who suffer from. The types of heart diseases are such that they can create severe complications if it is neglected or diagnosed wrongly.

The flow of blood is normal through the valves inside the heart. Bacteria enter the heart when one has ailments like rheumatic fever and other such bacterial diseases. Infective endocarditis is divided into two forms known as acute and subacute. In the subacute version of endocarditis, patients tend to live longer than the acute ones. The classification of the disease can show the progression rate and intensity of endocarditis. Subacute bacterial endocarditis (SBE) is caused by streptococci of low virulence and illness. The illness can be mild and moderate along with slow progress over weeks or months. Acute bacterial endocarditis (ABE) is a fulminant illness that can be caused by the staphylococcus aureus that is of more intense disease causing factor. In infective endocarditis, there are two types known as culture positive and culture negative.

Culture-negative endocarditis is caused due to micro-organisms requiring longer time to be identified in the laboratory. Organisms of these kinds are termed as'fastidious' because they have certain requirements. Pathogens causing culture-negative endocarditis are Aspergillus species, Brucella species, Coxiella burnetii, Chlamydia species, and HACEK bacteria. There is marked difference between native-valve endocarditis and prosthetic-valve endocarditis. The identification of the two types is very important. Endocaditis can happen when an individual is injecting narcotics intravenously that enters the staphylococcus aureus in the heart. Those without intravenous experience, have endocarditis on the left side of the heart.

In endocarditis, the valves are damaged severely. The damage can be caused by congenital defects, auto-immune mechanisms, surgeries or by mere old age. The damaged valve has clots formed on it that in clinical term is known as non-bacterial thrombotic endocarditis (NBTE). When there is clot inside the valve of the heart, the bacteria present attaches itself with the clot thereby giving rise to infections inside it. Bacteremia that is the flowing of the bacteria with the blood stream from cut; can be caused by dental process like extraction of teeth or other procedures. Those suffering from heart diseases are first administered with medications in order to prevent any kind of bacterial infections that can lead to endocarditis. The bacteria that cause endocarditis can also enter the body by diseases like colorectal cancer, urinary tract infections and IV drug. Those using the IV drugs have the right side of their heart valves affected.