Myocardial injury in the patient with COVID-19. Clinical implications.

Abstract

Increased levels of cardiac troponins, natriuretic peptides, and D-dimer have a prognostic value in patients with SARS-CoV-2 infection (COVID-19) with increased risk of acute myocardial infarction, myocarditis, heart failure, cardiac arrest, arrhythmias, and sudden death. It is important to recognize cardiac and pulmonary concomitant involvement in the same patient, since viral infections can produce an increased risk of myocardial infarction, heart failure, and cardiac arrhythmias with different mechanisms. Presentation may be sudden or as decompensation of an underlying condition. Myocardial injury is one of these possible presentations, being a recently described entity that consist of troponin elevation, compatible clinical manifestations, without angiographic evidence of coronary lesions. We present a review about its manifestation within COVID-19.