Fatal leptospiral myocarditis.
Clinical, instrumental and post-mortem studies were carried out in a patient with intractable cardiac failure, whose death was attribute to Weil's syndrome. A post-mortem examination showed the presence of numerous petechiae on the heart layers and diffuse lymphomonocytic infiltrates in the myocardium, epicardium and endocardium. We suggest that in patients affected by leptospirosis--an endemic disease with a possible fatal outcome--it is necessary to determine carefully any involvement of the cardiovascular system which may play a determinant role in the evolution of the disease.
De Biase
L
L
Cattedra di Angiologia, Università di Roma, La Sapienza.
De Curtis
G
G
Paparoni
S
S
Sciarra
D
D
Campa
P P
PP
D006333:Heart Failure / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009206:Myocardium / Q000473:pathology; D014895:Weil Disease / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology