Myocarditis - clinical course and 2-year outcome in 32 patients.

Background: Acute myocarditis is one of the most challenging diagnoses in cardiology. It is a disease with variable clinical presentation, progression and outcome.

Aim: To assess clinical characteristics and outcome of patients hospitalised with diagnosis of acute myocarditis from year 2006 to 2008.

[Radiotherapy and chemotherapy for oncological diseases--unappreciated risk factors for coronary artery disease? Acute coronary syndrome in 3 women after radiotherapy and chemotherapy--case reports].

Chest irradiation and chemotherapy may lead to precocious coronary artery disease due to accelerated atherosclerosis or fibrointimal hyperplasia. Three cases of women (43, 50, and 53 years old) without typical risk factors for cardiac disease admitted to hospital due to acute coronary syndrome are described. Two of them had received chest irradiation and chemotherapy for Hodgkin's disease in the past and the third had been treated with chemotherapy for breast cancer.

[Left coronary artery embolism resulting from ineffective anticoagulation in a patient suffering from dilated cardiomyopathy as a possible cause of myocardial infarction--a case report].

We present a case of a 58-year-old male being treated for dilated cardiomyopathy and atrial fibrillation for more than ten years who was admitted to the intensive care unit with the diagnosis of acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). In course of further diagnostics the coronary artery embolism resulting from the unintentional anticoagulant drug (acenocumarol) dose reduction was established as the most probable cause of STEMI. Primary percutaneous coronary intervention was successfully performed and the patient was discharged home in good clinical condition.