Inflammatory processes underlie a broad spectrum of conditions that injure the heart muscle and cause both structural and functional deficits. In this article, we address current knowledge regarding 4 common forms of myocardial inflammation: myocardial ischemia and reperfusion, sepsis, viral myocarditis, and immune rejection. Each of these pathological states has its own unique features in pathogenesis and disease evolution, but all reflect inflammatory mechanisms that are partially shared. From the point of injury to the mobilization of innate and adaptive immune responses and inflammatory amplification, the cellular and soluble mediators and mechanisms examined in this review will be discussed with a view that both beneficial and adverse consequences arise in these human conditions.