Acute myocarditis following Tityus trinitatis envenoming:: morphological and pathophysiological characteristics

The clinicopathological features of four cases of scorpion envenoming by Tityus trinitatis are presented. The cardiac histopathology is recorded in the two fatal cases. The pathology of the acute myocarditis was a mixed picture of a toxic myocarditis and coagulative myocytolysis. These cardiac lesions are also seen in catecholamine induced cardiotoxicity and lend support to the theory that an adrenergic surge follows scorpion envenoming. A brief review of scorpion envenoming syndrome is undertaken in the light of these findings. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.