Viral myocarditis is an acute or chronic inflammatory disease of the myocardium and may progress to dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) with life-threatening symptoms including heart failure, arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death. At present, the pathogenesis of viral myocarditis still remains unclear, so it is difficult for clinicians to diagnose, treat and find a specific biomarker. However, the pilot researches showed that pathogenesis of viral myocarditis was associated with genetic susceptibility. This article reviewed the above aspects.