Recommendations for genetic testing and counselling after sudden cardiac death: practical aspects for Swiss practice.

Recommendations for genetic testing and counselling after sudden cardiac death: practical aspects for Swiss practice. Swiss Med Wkly. 2018 Jul 09;148:w14638 Authors: Medeiros Domingo A, Bolliger S, Gräni C, Rieubland C, Hersch D, Asatryan B, Schyma C, Saguner A, Wyler D, Bhuiyan Z, Fellman F, Osculati AM, Ringger R, Fokstuen S, Sabatasso S, Wilhelm M, Michaud K, Swiss Working Group On Sudden Cardiac Death Abstract There is a need to standardise, within a coordinated Swiss framework, the practical aspects of genetic testing and genetic counselling on possibly inherited cardiovascular disorders in relatives of a sudden cardiac death (SCD) victim. Because of the major advances in genetic investigation techniques and recent publication of international guidelines in the field of cardiology, genetics and pathology, we consider it important to summarise the current evidence and propose an optimal approach to post-mortem genetic investigation for SCD victims and their families in Switzerland. In this article, we discuss important technical, financial and medico-ethical aspects, and provide updated information on specific situations in which forensic pathologists, general practitioners and cardiologists should suspect a genetic origin of the SCD. At present, the principles of benefit, the duty to warn and the impact of genetic information for family members at risk are considered as strong justifications for post-mortem disclosure and preva...
Source: Swiss Medical Weekly - Category: General Medicine Authors: Tags: Swiss Med Wkly Source Type: research