“The recommendation is that those diagnosed with myocarditis should rest for three months, but there’s no data to support that. This study was the first ever to have follow-up cardiac MRIs for those diagnosed with myocarditis following COVID-19, and some showed heart inflammation resolved in as few as four weeks later. But some still had scar tissue, and the question is how that will affect their health in the future,” said Dr. Saurabh Rajpal, co-author, cardiologist and assistant professor in the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine.
The research supports findings from a smaller study in 2020 led by Rajpal and Daniels that showed CMR is effective in identifying myocardial inflammation.
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Researchers of the Big Ten study recommended further studies evaluating which athletes would benefit from CMR testing following COVID-19 infection. However, they noted several obstacles with CMR screening, including accessibility and expertise required for interpretation after a positive COVID-19 diagnosis.
“The challenge is that competitive athletes are used to aches and pains and working through them, and they may not report cardiac symptoms. This research helps raise awareness about asymptomatic myocarditis. Those who are diagnosed with it may need to rest and slowly ramp up exercise even though they’re not describing any cardiac symptoms,” Daniels said.
The next step in the research is a core analysis of the data by experts from the Big Ten participating institutions who specialize in interpreting CMRs, echocardiograms and electrocardiograms.
“All of the analysis of the cardiac screenings were done locally and in real time. We’ve started a deep analysis to better predict who may have cardiac abnormalities,” Daniels said. “This will help us standardize CMR protocols and interpretation and determine when athletes can safely return to play.”
Other Ohio State Wexner Medical Center researchers participating in the study were Dr. James Borchers, director of the Division of Family Medicine-Sports Medicine and The Ohio State University’s head team physician, and Dr. Matthew Tong, a cardiologist who specializes in advanced cardiac imaging.
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