Sudden death due to asymptomatic myocarditis – a forensic case report

Abstract

Myocarditis is a disease associated with inflammation and damage of the myocardium. It has a very diverse clinical manifestation from asymptomatic cases to fatal heart failure and sudden death. Early diagnosis and treatment is very important. In young people it is one of the common causes of sudden unexpected death. We present a case of a 31 year old man, who was found dead in his apartment. He never had complained of health problems, even prior to his death. Full forensic examination of the body was performed with subsequent chemical and histological analysis. The results showed that he suffered from asymptomatic myocarditis.