Human herpes virus 6 causing myocarditis in a fetus: an infectious cause to a congenital heart defect

We read with interest the article published by Comar et al . The authors investigated the presence of human herpes virus 6 (HHV-6) genome in archival explanted myocardial tissue of children who underwent heart transplantation due to cardiomyopathy or congenital heart disease. HHV-6 genome was detected in 11 of the 35 (31.4%) hearts. The authors raise the question of the significance of HHV-6 in heart disease. Does HHV-6 play a role in the development of cardiomyopathy or congenital heart defects?1 We report a case of fetal myocarditis in which a PCR study of cardiac tissue showed the presence of HHV-6. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first case of HHV-6 infection in utero associated with myocarditis and congenital heart abnormality. A 15-year-old primigravida at 22 weeks gestation was referred to our Hospital due to fetal dilated cardiomyopathy. Her past medical history was irrelevant without febrile illness or suspected viral infection during pregnancy. The fetal echocardiography showed enlargement of the right atrium, left ventricle and right ventricle. The contractility was reduced in the right ventricle …