Cardiac transplantation for pediatric giant cell myocarditis

Abstract

Giant cell myocarditis (GCM) is an organ-specific, autoimmune disease that infrequently affects children and generally has a more aggressive (often fatal) course than other forms of myocarditis. No data are available about the epidemiology of GCM in children. We describe a 13-year-old girl who presented with ventricular tachycardia and rapid hemodynamic deterioration that required extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) as a bridge to heart transplantation. Histopathologic examination of the explanted heart revealed GCM. We review the demographic features, clinical course and post-transplant immunosuppressive therapy of all patients aged 19 years and younger reported to have had GCM.