Loeffler's endocarditis—A case report

Loeffler's endocarditis is an acute form of primary restrictive cardiomyopathy. We report the case of a young woman with pleuritic chest pain associated with fever and hypereosinophilia. She was hospitalized with suspected acute myopericarditis and was treated with aspirin, leading to clinical...

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Main Authors: Ricardo Faria, Walter Santos, Vasco Marques, Nuno Marques, Nelson Tavares, Veloso Gomes
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2012-06-01
Series:Revista Portuguesa de Cardiologia (English Edition)
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2174204912000827
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spelling doaj-d8e9d0af732147e4bd4d5a1de0ebc8222020-11-25T01:35:46ZengElsevierRevista Portuguesa de Cardiologia (English Edition)2174-20492012-06-01316445448Loeffler's endocarditis—A case reportRicardo Faria0Walter Santos1Vasco Marques2Nuno Marques3Nelson Tavares4Veloso Gomes5Corresponding author.; Serviço de Cardiologia, Hospital de Faro, Faro, PortugalServiço de Cardiologia, Hospital de Faro, Faro, PortugalServiço de Cardiologia, Hospital de Faro, Faro, PortugalServiço de Cardiologia, Hospital de Faro, Faro, PortugalServiço de Cardiologia, Hospital de Faro, Faro, PortugalServiço de Cardiologia, Hospital de Faro, Faro, PortugalLoeffler's endocarditis is an acute form of primary restrictive cardiomyopathy. We report the case of a young woman with pleuritic chest pain associated with fever and hypereosinophilia. She was hospitalized with suspected acute myopericarditis and was treated with aspirin, leading to clinical improvement. Ten days after discharge, she was rehospitalized due to recurrence of chest pain. The echocardiogram showed what appeared to be a mass filling the apex of the right ventricle (RV). She was referred for magnetic resonance imaging, which revealed marked myocardial thickening in the apex of the RV. The patient underwent an endomyocardial biopsy, resulting in a diagnosis of eosinophilic endocarditis. After treatment with prednisolone, all symptoms and the eosinophilia disappeared, and there was complete remission of the RV abnormalities. After three years of follow-up, the patient remains asymptomatic. This case shows that, even without an etiologic diagnosis of eosinophilia, the prognosis for Loeffler's endocarditis can be favorable if treatment is initiated early. Resumo: A endomiocardite de Löffler é uma miocardiopatia restritiva primária aguda. Relatamos o caso clínico de uma jovem que inicia dor torácica pleurítica associada a febre e hipereosinofilia. Internada por suspeita de miopericardite aguda e submetida a tratamento com ácido acetilsalicílico, verificou-se melhoria clínica. Dez dias após a alta é reinternada por recorrência da dor. O ecocardiograma mostrou uma aparente massa ocupando o apex do ventrículo direito (VD). Referenciada para ressonância magnética cardíaca, esta demonstrou um marcado espessamento do miocárdio no apex do VD. Foi submetida a biópsia endomiocárdica que diagnosticou uma endomiocardite eosinofílica. Após o início do tratamento com prednisolona, verificou-se o desaparecimento da sintomatologia, da eosinofilia e uma regressão completa das alterações no VD. Ao fim de 3 anos de seguimento mantém-se assintomática. O caso descrito revela que o prognóstico da endomiocardite de Löffler, mesmo sem um diagnóstico etiológico da eosinofilia, poderá ser favorável, se o tratamento for iniciado precocemente. Keywords: Loeffler's endocarditis, Hypereosinophilia, Corticosteroids, Palavras-chave: Endomiocardite de Löffler, Hipereosinofilia, Corticosteróideshttp://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2174204912000827
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Ricardo Faria
Walter Santos
Vasco Marques
Nuno Marques
Nelson Tavares
Veloso Gomes
spellingShingle Ricardo Faria
Walter Santos
Vasco Marques
Nuno Marques
Nelson Tavares
Veloso Gomes
Loeffler's endocarditis—A case report
Revista Portuguesa de Cardiologia (English Edition)
author_facet Ricardo Faria
Walter Santos
Vasco Marques
Nuno Marques
Nelson Tavares
Veloso Gomes
author_sort Ricardo Faria
title Loeffler's endocarditis—A case report
title_short Loeffler's endocarditis—A case report
title_full Loeffler's endocarditis—A case report
title_fullStr Loeffler's endocarditis—A case report
title_full_unstemmed Loeffler's endocarditis—A case report
title_sort loeffler's endocarditis—a case report
publisher Elsevier
series Revista Portuguesa de Cardiologia (English Edition)
issn 2174-2049
publishDate 2012-06-01
description Loeffler's endocarditis is an acute form of primary restrictive cardiomyopathy. We report the case of a young woman with pleuritic chest pain associated with fever and hypereosinophilia. She was hospitalized with suspected acute myopericarditis and was treated with aspirin, leading to clinical improvement. Ten days after discharge, she was rehospitalized due to recurrence of chest pain. The echocardiogram showed what appeared to be a mass filling the apex of the right ventricle (RV). She was referred for magnetic resonance imaging, which revealed marked myocardial thickening in the apex of the RV. The patient underwent an endomyocardial biopsy, resulting in a diagnosis of eosinophilic endocarditis. After treatment with prednisolone, all symptoms and the eosinophilia disappeared, and there was complete remission of the RV abnormalities. After three years of follow-up, the patient remains asymptomatic. This case shows that, even without an etiologic diagnosis of eosinophilia, the prognosis for Loeffler's endocarditis can be favorable if treatment is initiated early. Resumo: A endomiocardite de Löffler é uma miocardiopatia restritiva primária aguda. Relatamos o caso clínico de uma jovem que inicia dor torácica pleurítica associada a febre e hipereosinofilia. Internada por suspeita de miopericardite aguda e submetida a tratamento com ácido acetilsalicílico, verificou-se melhoria clínica. Dez dias após a alta é reinternada por recorrência da dor. O ecocardiograma mostrou uma aparente massa ocupando o apex do ventrículo direito (VD). Referenciada para ressonância magnética cardíaca, esta demonstrou um marcado espessamento do miocárdio no apex do VD. Foi submetida a biópsia endomiocárdica que diagnosticou uma endomiocardite eosinofílica. Após o início do tratamento com prednisolona, verificou-se o desaparecimento da sintomatologia, da eosinofilia e uma regressão completa das alterações no VD. Ao fim de 3 anos de seguimento mantém-se assintomática. O caso descrito revela que o prognóstico da endomiocardite de Löffler, mesmo sem um diagnóstico etiológico da eosinofilia, poderá ser favorável, se o tratamento for iniciado precocemente. Keywords: Loeffler's endocarditis, Hypereosinophilia, Corticosteroids, Palavras-chave: Endomiocardite de Löffler, Hipereosinofilia, Corticosteróides
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2174204912000827
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