View Main Condition: Cardiomyopathy
Cardiomyopathy is disease in which the heart muscle becomes weakened, stretched, or has another structural problem.
Dilated cardiomyopathy is a condition in which the heart muscle becomes weakened and enlarged. As a result, the heart cannot pump enough blood to the rest of the body.
There are many types of cardiomyopathy. Dilated cardiomyopathy is the most common form, but it may be the result of different underlying conditions. Some health care providers use the term to indicate a specific condition, called idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy. There is no known cause for this type of dilated cardiomyopathy.
Cardiomyopathy - dilated; Primary cardiomyopathy; Diabetic cardiomyopathy; Idiopathic cardiomyopathy; Alcoholic cardiomyopathy
The most common causes of dilated cardiomyopathy are:
There are many other causes of dilated cardiomyopathy, including:
This condition can affect anyone at any age. However, it is most common in adult men.
Symptoms of heart failure are most common. They most often develop slowly over time. However, sometimes symptoms start very suddenly and may be severe.
Common symptoms are:
Things you can do at home to take care of your condition include:
Most people who have heart failure need to take medicines. Some medicines treat your symptoms. Others may help prevent your heart failure from becoming worse, or may prevent other heart problems.
Procedures and surgeries you may need include:
For advanced cardiomyopathy:
Chronic heart failure becomes worse over time. Many people who have heart failure will die from the condition. Thinking about the type of care you may want at the end of life and discussing these issues with loved ones and your health care provider is important.
Marco Merlo practices in Trieste, Italy. Merlo is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM). He is also highly rated in 22 other conditions, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM), Cardiomyopathy, Familial Dilated Cardiomyopathy, Heart Transplant, and Pacemaker Implantation.
Gianfranco Sinagra practices in Trieste, Italy. Sinagra is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM). He is also highly rated in 42 other conditions, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Cardiomyopathy, Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM), Heart Failure, Heart Transplant, and Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI).
Davide Stolfo practices in Trieste, Italy. Stolfo is rated as an Elite expert by MediFind in the treatment of Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM). He is also highly rated in 9 other conditions, according to our data. His top areas of expertise are Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM), Cardiomyopathy, Heart Failure, Heart Transplant, and Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI).
Heart failure is most often a chronic illness, which may get worse over time. Some people develop severe heart failure, in which medicines, other treatments, and surgery no longer help. Many people are at risk for deadly heart rhythms, and may need medicines or a defibrillator.
Contact your provider if you have symptoms of cardiomyopathy.
Get emergency medical help right away if you have chest pain, palpitations or fainting.
Summary: The QUALIMYORYTHM trial is a multicentre controlled study, aiming to assess health-related quality of life (HRQoL) of 107 children aged 6 to 18 years old with inherited cardiac arrhythmia (long QT syndrome, Brugada syndrome, catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia, or arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia), or inherited cardiomyopathies (hypertrophic, dilated, or restrictive car...
Summary: Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) with biventricular pacing (BiV) is the cornerstone treatment for heart failure patients with ventricular dyssynchrony. Recently, a new concept, conduction system pacing (CSP) with permanent pacing, including His bundle pacing and left bundle branch pacing, has been proposed as a potential alternative to conventional BiV-CRT. The prospective, randomized trial...
Published Date: January 09, 2022
Published By: Michael A. Chen, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, Harborview Medical Center, University of Washington Medical School, Seattle, WA. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, Brenda Conaway, Editorial Director, and the A.D.A.M. Editorial team.
Hershberger RE. The dilated, restrictive, and infiltrative cardiomyopathies. In: Libby P, Bonow RO, Mann DL, Tomaselli GF, Bhatt DL, Solomon SD, eds. Braunwald's Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine. 12th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2022:chap 52.
McKenna WJ, Elliott P. Diseases of the myocardium and endocardium. In: Goldman L, Schafer AI, eds. Goldman-Cecil Medicine. 26th ed. Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier; 2020:chap 54.