Myocarditis Imaging Diagnosis Criteria | MRI Exam | Medical Algorithm

Blauwet et al proposed criteria for diagnosing myocarditis on an MRI exam. The authors are from the Mayo Clinic.

MRI findings associated with myocarditis:

(1) an increase in the regional or global myocardial signal intensity in T2-weighted images

(2) an increase in the global myocardial early enhancement ratio (between myocardium and skeletal muscle) in a gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted image

(3) one or more focal lesions showing delayed enhancement with a nonischemic regional distribution in a gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted image

Criteria Present	Clinical Situation	Interpretation
2 or 3 of the criteria	clinical suspicion of myocarditis	myocarditis (myocardial inflammation)
criterion 3 only		consistent with myocyte injury and/or scar secondary to myocardial inflammation
1 criterion present		repeat cardiac MRI in 1-2 weeks
0 criteria present	clinical suspicion of myocarditis AND recent onset of symptoms	repeat cardiac MRI in 1-2 weeks

Additional MRI findings that support the diagnosis of myocarditis:

(1) left ventricular dysfunction

(2) pericardial effusion

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Criteria for Diagnosing Myocarditis on MRI Exam