Takotsubo cardiomyopathy secondary to haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis in HIV patients: a comprehensive review

Abstract

Haemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) is an immune dysregulation disorder with variable presentations and non-specific features making it extremely difficult to diagnose early in the clinical course. Here, we are presenting a case of a young man who presented in cardiogenic shock with findings of anterolateral wall ischaemia on ECG. Echocardiography findings were consistent with takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TCM). Cardiac catheterisation showed clean coronary arteries and pulmonary artery pressure measurements showed high output cardiac failure. After extensive workup, the patient was diagnosed with HLH. In spite of aggressive supportive and definitive therapy, he eventually died due to a complicated clinical course. We did a comprehensive literature review and found that this is the first reported case of HLH presenting as TCM as the initial clinical manifestation.