Fatal Acute Heart Failure in the Course of Macrophage Activation Syndrome: Case Report and Literature Review

Abstract

Macrophage activation syndrome is a severe and potentially fatal condition in rheumatology. It can involve many different organs and systems, including the cardiovascular system, but heart failure due to its course is a relatively rare occurrence. In the following paper, we present a case of a young woman with newly diagnosed systemic lupus erythematosus who, in the span of two months, developed macrophage activation syndrome and acute heart failure, which caused her death. We analyze potential causes that may have led to that outcome, and present a brief review of the current literature concerning different macrophage groups in the heart and their potential involvement in the development of heart failure.

Acute Heart Failure in the Course of Macrophage Activation Syndrome Due to Newly Diagnosed Systemic Lupus Erythematosus: Case Presentation and Literature Review

“…Yet there are not many case reports of heart failure caused by MAS available in the literature. In recent years, only a handful of such cases were reported: one paper describing a decompensated right heart failure [ 8 ], one presenting two cases of acute heart failure treated with immunosuppression [ 9 ], and one case report of fatal acute heart failure reported by our team [ 10 ].…”