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Case Reports
. 2025 Feb 20;9(2):ytae609.
doi: 10.1093/ehjcr/ytae609. eCollection 2025 Feb.

Rapid onset of myocardial calcification following septic shock due to influenza superinfection: a case report

Thibaut Gobé  1 , Adrien Werquin  1 , Nicolas Polge  1 , Bernard Cholley  1   2
Affiliations
Case Reports

Rapid onset of myocardial calcification following septic shock due to influenza superinfection: a case report

Thibaut Gobé et al. Eur Heart J Case Rep. .

Abstract

Background: Myocardial calcification is an unusual complication of septic cardiomyopathy. Dystrophic calcification may occur after damage to myocardial tissue, but its occurrence is rare.

Case summary: A 42-year-old pregnant woman with no past medical history was admitted in intensive care for respiratory distress caused by bacterial superinfection of influenza. Subepicardial calcification of the left ventricle appeared on a computed tomography at Day 8. Calcification worsened quickly, but we observed a paradoxical improvement in left ventricle function, as assessed by left ventricular ejection fraction and global longitudinal strain using echocardiography with speckle tracking.

Discussion: The pathophysiology of myocardial calcification is not fully understood, but prolonged haemodynamic failure, profound acidosis, high vasopressor doses, and acute respiratory distress syndrome were previously associated with septic-related myocardial calcification.

Keywords: ARDS; Case report; Global longitudinal strain; Myocardial calcification; Septic shock; Subepicardial calcification; VV-ECMO.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Global longitudinal strain for left ventricular function at Day 1.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Evolution in myocardial calcification on the serial chest computed tomography scans performed over the time course of the acute respiratory distress syndrome.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Global longitudinal strain for left ventricular function at Day 8.
None
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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