Heart muscle performance after experimental viral myocarditis.

Abstract

A B S T R A C T As part of an inquiry into possible antecedents of idiopathic cardiomyopathy, acute experimental coxsackie virus myocarditis was studied for late structural and functional sequelae. Myocarditis was induced in 12-and 22-day-old hamsters by inoculation with coxsackie virus B3. Early viremia occurred, followed by virus replication in heart muscle.Maximum peak developed tension (Tpd) of isometrically contracting isolated heart muscle was depressed 17 and 43% in the animals inoculated at 12 days, and studied 18 and 90 days later, respectively, as compared to their uninoculated controls. In both infected groups, less muscle stretch was required to reach the length at which Tpd was produced. Animals studied 180 days after inoculation did not differ from controls.The muscles from animals inoculated at 22 days of age and studied 18 days later showed a 15% depression of Tpd compared to their controls. Glycerinated muscles from this infected group developed 50% less tension than their controls. The muscles of hamsters inoculated with virus at 22 days and studied 90 and 180 days later showed no change in Tpd.The data suggest that contractility and compliance of heart muscle are decreased 18 days after inoculation, but recover by 90 days if the animals are inoculated at age 22 days. However, if the animals are inoculated at a younger age (12 days), depression of myocardial performance persists for at least an additional 90 days.It is concluded that the inflammatory stage of experimental acute coxsackie virus B3 myocarditis in the

Myocarditis and Dilated Cardiomyopathy

“…Late myocardial fibrosis was also seen in our study using Coxsackie viruses B3 and B4 (12). Functional abnormality of the heart muscle has also been reported to persist in the chronic stage of viral infection in hamsters (13). We were successful in producing an animal model in BALB/c mice of chronic perimyocarditis induced by Coxsackie virus B3 (14); however, dilatation or hypertrophy of the heart similar to changes in patients with cardiomyopathy was not seen in these experiments.…”