MRI and the exercise blood pressure response in dilated cardiomyopathy

Idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is the most common isoform of non-ischaemic cardiomyopathy and is characterised by dilatation of LV chamber and systolic dysfunction, which leads to progressive heart failure and a high risk for fatal arrhythmias. Although clinical manifestations are similar, DCM is not a single stage of a disease spectrum but may include several undetermined aetiologies, such as chronic myocarditis, tachycardia-induced cardiomyopathy, drug-induced cardiomyopathy, alcoholic cardiomyopathy, undiagnosed cardiac sarcoidosis and end-stage hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.1 Despite therapeutic advances in heart failure, the mortality and morbidity of DCM remain high. Therefore, identifying high-risk patients who are most likely to benefit from early aggressive therapies constitutes a crucial part of patient management. Several factors, such as age, sex, New York Heart Association functional classes, LVEF, QRS duration, exercise capacity and several blood biomarkers, have been associated with adverse prognosis in patients with DCM. However, the prediction of long-term...
Source: Heart - Category: Cardiology Authors: Tags: Dilated cardiomyopathy, Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, Drugs: cardiovascular system, Heart failure, Hypertension, Epidemiology Editorials Source Type: research