title: Immunomodulatory treatment strategies in inflammatory cardiomyopathy: current status and future perspectives.
abstract: Chronic autoimmunity and viral persistence constitute prognostic factors for adverse outcome in dilated cardiomyopathy patients. Inflammatory cardiomyopathy is a specific cardiomyopathy entity diagnosed in approximately 50% of dilated cardiopmyopathy patients by immunohistological quantification of immunocompetent infiltrates and cell adhesion molecule abundance. Patients with autoimmune inflammatory cardiomyopathy benefit from immunosuppressive treatment and immunoadsorption by improvement of left ventricular ejection fraction and heart failure symptoms, paralleled by a significant suppression of intramyocardial inflammation. However, dilated cardiomyopathy patients with viral persistence do not respond favorably to immunosuppression.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology and Pneumonology, Charité-University Medicine Berlin, Campus Benjamin Franklin, Berlin, Germany. noutsias@zedat.fu-berlin.de
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Noutsias
authors.forename: Matthias
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Pauschinger
authors.forename: Wolfgang-Christian
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Poller
authors.forename: Heinz-Peter
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Schultheiss
authors.forename: Uwe
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Kühl
mesh_terms: D000257:Adenoviridae Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy; D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000628:therapy*; D002311:Cardiomyopathy, Dilated / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*; D003384:Coxsackievirus Infections / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D016756:Immunoglobulins, Intravenous / Q000627:therapeutic use; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D009205:Myocarditis / Q000276:immunology / Q000628:therapy*
chemical_list: D000276:Adjuvants, Immunologic; D000998:Antiviral Agents; D016756:Immunoglobulins, Intravenous; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents