Debates in Detecting and Defusing Inflammatory Cardiomyopathies: Mission (Im)Possible

Inflammatory cardiomyopathies remain an underrecognized and undertreated cause of heart failure despite advances in imaging, pathology, and immunomodulatory therapies. Clinical presentation is often nonspecific, leading to delayed diagnosis, inappropriate classification as idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy, and missed opportunities for disease-modifying treatment.

While cardiac MRI and PET imaging have improved noninvasive assessment, definitive diagnosis frequently requires endomyocardial biopsy (EMB), which remains underutilized due to concerns regarding yield, safety, and interpretation. This debate-style didactic session will cover contemporary diagnostic and therapeutic controversies in inflammatory cardiomyopathies. Conditions covered will include cardiac sarcoidosis; giant cell and lymphocytic myocarditis; and other forms of inflammatory cardiomyopathy, including genetic etiologies.

Learning Objectives

• Discuss diagnostic strategies to differentiate forms of inflammatory cardiomyopathy.
• Review treatment strategies for inflammatory cardiomyopathies.
• Discuss contemporary outcomes and the path to recovery versus the need for advanced heart failure therapies.