Absence of Myocardial Involvement After SARS-CoV-2 Vaccination in Asymptomatic Adolescents

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the presence of subclinical myocardial damage in adolescents who were vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2. One hundred twenty asymptomatic adolescents with a mean age of 16.0 ± 0.4 years (51% girls) underwent cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging. SARS-CoV-2 IgG/IgM antibody testing was performed, and self-reported dates of confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection and/or vaccination were collected. Participants were classified according to SARS-CoV-2 status as naïve (non-infected and unvaccinated, n = 74), infected (unvaccinated, n = 23), and vaccinated (independently of past infection status, n = 23). Biventricular volumes and ejection fraction and myocardial T2 relaxation time were similar in the three groups. T1 relaxation time was slightly higher in vaccinated adolescents (1249 ± 35 ms) than in naïve and infected participants (1231 ± 30 ms and 1227 ± 29 ms, respectively; p = 0.035), although this difference was considered clinically irrelevant. This observational study found no evidence of relevant subclinical myocardial involvement after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in asymptomatic adolescents.