Acute eosinophilic myocarditis with dramatic response to steroid therapy: the central role of echocardiography in diagnosis and follow-up.

Abstract

Acute eosinophilic myocarditis is a rare cause of acute heart failure. We present the case of a 32-year-old woman who had presumptive eosinophilic myocarditis as part of a generalized hypersensitivity reaction (Drug Rash with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms [DRESS] syndrome) that exhibited a dramatic response to steroid therapy. We highlight the central role of 2-dimensional and tissue-Doppler echocardiography in the diagnosis of myocarditis and the serial evaluation of left ventricular systolic and diastolic function in this setting.