MR useful in evaluating heart health of athletes who have recovered from COVID-19

A recent study from Vanderbilt University Medical Center found a much lower degree of myocarditis in athletes than previously reported1. Myocarditis is an abnormal inflammation of the heart muscle and is a leading cause of sudden cardiac death among athletes. Despite the lower incidence of myocarditis than expected, the authors found that cardiac MR (CMR) remains a useful tool for evaluating competitive athletes prior to a return to sports.

The study compared 59 student-athletes who had COVID-19 to a near equal number of healthy controls. The degree of myocarditis found by CMR in Vanderbilt athletes was only 3%. Other screening tests in the study, such as blood work, clinical exams, EKG and echocardiograms, did not help identify athletes who had COVID-19 with myocarditis who had no COVID-19 symptoms. The findings highlight the importance of considering CMR in addition to traditional screening measures to detect myocarditis.