Author(s):
Barberato, Silvio Henrique ; Cardim, Nuno ; do Carmo Rassi, Daniela ; Baritussio, Anna ; de Souza Beck, Adenalva Lima ; Cosyns, Bernard ; Felix, Alex ; Gargani, Luna ; Almeida, André L.C. ; Nunes, Maria Carmo Pereira ; Vieira, Marcelo Luiz Campos ; Dweck, Marc R. ; Petersen, Steffen Erhard
Date: 2025
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/10362/187984
Origin: Repositório Institucional da UNL
Subject(s): cardiac care; cardiovascular imaging; global health; neglected tropical diseases; tropical medicine; Radiology Nuclear Medicine and imaging; Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine; SDG 3 - Good Health and Well-being; SDG 13 - Climate Action
Description
Funding Information: This work acknowledges the support of the National Institute for Health and Care Research Barts Biomedical Research Centre (NIHR203330), a delivery partnership of Barts Health NHS Trust, Queen Mary University of London, St George's University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, and St George's University of London (SEP). Publisher Copyright: © The Author(s) 2025. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology. All rights reserved.
Tropical diseases (TDs), or neglected TDs, affect over 1 billion subjects globally, primarily in impoverished regions. Despite their impact, these diseases are often overlooked on the global health agenda, with limited resources allocated to their control. TDs are caused by various pathogens, including viruses, protozoa, helminths, and bacteria. Climate change and migration have led to the spread of TDs beyond tropical regions, highlighting the need for healthcare providers worldwide to address their management. The World Health Organization has released a road map for the prevention, control, and elimination of TDs by 2030. Cardiovascular involvement in TDs, including myocarditis, pericardial disease, pulmonary hypertension, obstructions caused by cysts, myocardial ischaemia, and cardiomyopathies, complicates disease prognosis. However, cardiovascular complications of TDs are often under-recognized and understudied. This scientific statement, prepared by the European Association of Cardiovascular Imaging and the Cardiovascular Imaging Department of the Brazilian Society of Cardiology, reviews the current understanding of the use of cardiovascular imaging in TDs, underscores gaps of knowledge, and proposes potential solutions. Although limited evidence is available, cardiovascular imaging techniques are valuable in diagnosing and managing cardiac manifestations of TDs. The scientific statement addresses some of the main tropical infections today, such as dengue, malaria, schistosomiasis, and tuberculosis, but excludes Chagas disease and rheumatic fever, which have been extensively covered in other documents. When used effectively, cardiovascular imaging can potentially aid in early diagnosis, prevention of complications, and management of cardiovascular impairment due to TDs, improving healthcare systems and patient care.
