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Cardiomyopathy is the term for heart muscle disease. There is a decrease in the heart's ability to pump due to muscle weakness or improper function.
There are four common classifications for cardiomyopathy:
- Ischemic Cardiomyopathy - the most common in the United States. Weakened heart muscle is related to obstructive coronary disease or heart injury (heart attack). Cardiac catheterization is often performed to prove or disprove this etiology and to address high grade obstructions to blood flow to feed threatened muscle tissue. Medications are geared toward optimizing blood flow and reducing heart muscle workload.
- Dilated Cardiomyopathy - a common type of cardiomyopathy in which the heart cavity (especially the left side) is enlarged and weak, diminishing the output of blood pumped by the heart. Dilated cardiomyopathy can cause leaky valves, poor output from the heart and formation of blood clots in the heart. Some cases are caused by a genetic predisposition, a post viral syndrome, toxins such as chemotherapy, cocaine or alcohol, or rarely may be related to pregnancy or vitamin deficiency.
- Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy - a genetic disorder that causes the left ventricle of the heart to thicken which prevents the heart from pumping blood properly. Symptoms may include shortness of breath, chest pain, dizziness and fainting. Some patients experience abnormal heart rhythms. Patients are treated with medications such as beta blockers and calcium channel blockers, and for those patients with arrhythmias, anti-arrhythmia medication. Often defibrillator therapy is recommended in this type of cardiomyopathy. Patient information is available through an organized support group and information is available at this website: http://www.4hcm.org
- Restrictive Cardiomyopathy - the walls of the ventricle are rigid and do not allow for the normal filling of the heart chambers with blood. This is a rare form of cardiomyopathy. Patients may experience fatigue, swollen hands and feet and difficulty breathing with exertion.
Treatment of cardiomyopathy depends on the type but may include use of medication combinations often including diuretics and implantation of pacemakers or defibrillators, or ablation which is a procedure to correct heart rhythm disturbances. Family screening may be requested.
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