CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A popular MSNBC host said she developed pericarditis, followed by myocarditis after having a cold. However, many people on social media claim her myocarditis diagnosis was actually a side effect caused by her COVID-19 vaccination.
Myocarditis is inflammation of the heart muscle, and pericarditis is inflammation of the outer lining of the heart, according to definitions on the CDC’s website. In both cases, the CDC says the “body’s immune system causes inflammation in response to an infection or some other trigger.”
THE QUESTION
Can you develop myocarditis from the common cold?
OUR SOURCES
THE ANSWER
While some people can get myocarditis from the COVID-19 vaccine, doctors say you are far more likely to get it from the common cold.
WHAT WE FOUND
According to Johns Hopkins, myocarditis occurs when the heart muscle becomes inflamed. They go on to say myocarditis is rare, usually caused by an infection in the body, most commonly by the common cold, influenza, or COVID-19.
"When we see a patient who comes in with myocarditis, one of the first questions I will ask is, have you had a cold recently? Because we know many different types of the virus have been linked to post-myocarditis," Kohli said. "When you have a cold, it activates the immune system, the immune system gets confused, attacks your heart cells instead, and causes inflammation of the heart."
Kohli said myocarditis is not a new disease, but doctors have been reporting it more since the pandemic began.
"We have seen overall a higher number of cases of myocarditis," Kohli said. "We are looking harder for it."
The COVID-19 vaccine can cause cases of myocarditis. However, Kohli said these cases would develop within a few weeks, not later down the line.
"It happens all with that immune activation phenomenon, so it happens soon after that exposure, whether that exposure is the vaccine or, in this particular case, a virus," Kohli said.
In a study by the American Heart Association, researchers looked at medical records of people hospitalized for myocarditis within 21 days of receiving the Pfizer or Moderna vaccine.
They found that of the 7.3 million people receiving the first, second, or third shot, only 41 people were hospitalized for myocarditis.
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