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Background: Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) is an important cause of sudden death in young adults. On the basis of histopathological ...
Clinical Investigations Serological Evidence for the Association of Bartonella henselae Infection with Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy

Address for correspondence: Rolf Jenni, MD Clinic of Cardiology University Hospital Zurich Raemistr. 100, CH-8091 Zurich, Switzerland [email protected]

Andreas H. Fischer, MD,∗ Bernd van der Loo, MD,∗ Gertrud M. Sch¨ ar, MD,† Reinhard Zbinden, MD, MSc,† Firat Duru, MD,∗ Corinna Brunckhorst, MD,∗ Valentin Rousson, PhD,‡ Etienne Delacr´etaz,MD,¶ Thomas Stuber, MD,¶ Erwin N. Oechslin, MD,∗ Ferenc Follath, MD,§ Rolf Jenni, MD∗ ∗

Clinic of Cardiology; † Institute of Microbiology; ‡ Department of Biostatistics, Institute of Social and Preventative Medicine; § Department of Internal Medicine, University Hospital Zurich, Zurich; ¶ Department of Cardiology, Inselspital University Hospital Berne, Berne, Switzerland

Background: Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) is an important cause of sudden death in young adults. On the basis of histopathological findings its pathogenesis may involve both a genetic origin and an inflammatory process. Bartonella henselae may cause endomyocarditis and was detected in myocardium from a young male who succumbed to sudden cardiac death. Hypothesis: We hypothesized that chronic infection with Bartonella henselae could contribute to the pathogenesis of ARVC. Methods: We investigated sera from 49 patients with ARVC for IgG antibodies to Bartonella henselae. In this study, 58 Swiss blood donors tested by the same method served as controls. Results: Six patients with ARVC (12%) had positive (>1:256) IgG titres in the immunofluorescence test with Bartonella henselae. In contrast, only 1 elevated titre was found in 58 controls (p1:256 considered positive) and (B) distribution of IgG antibody concentrations to Bartonella henselae in familial and nonfamilial ARVC cases A

Control

Bartonella henselae IgG Titre Positive

Negative

1

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