Orbital myositis, vitiligo, and giant cell myocarditis.

Giant cell myocarditis is a rare idiopathic inflammatory heart disease characterized histologically by multinucleated giant cells, and clinically by rapid progressive heart failure, arrhythmias, or sudden death, often within hours to days of initial symptoms. There are two previously reported cases of giant cell myocarditis with idiopathic orbital myositis. We report a similar case in a patient who also had vitiligo, a diagnostic endomyocardial biopsy, and survival because of a cardiac transplant. Giant cell myocarditis should be monitored for in the course of inflammatory orbital myopathy because of its life-threatening fulminant course.