Overview
Cardiomyopathy is a term used to describe a heart muscle disease where it makes it harder for one to pump blood from one’s heart to the rest of one’s body. In most cases, cardiomyopathy leads to the thickening, enlargement, and rigidness of the heart. This disease is exceptionally dangerous as it can lead to heart failure or arrhythmias. Not to mention, it can lead to other types of heart diseases as well. Cardiomyopathy can be acquired or inherited. Acquiring this disease means that it developed because of another heart disease that the patient already has. While inheriting the disease means that the patient had the gene passed on to them by parents. There are four main types of cardiomyopathy: dilated, hypertrophic, arrhythmogenic, and restrictive. Treatment differs depending on the type of cardiomyopathy and the seriousness.
Types of Cardiomyopathy
Although there are many different types of cardiomyopathy, there are only four main types.
Dilated Cardiomyopathy. In dilated cardiomyopathy, the left ventricle of the heart becomes enlarged or dilated making it harder for the heart to pump out blood. Even though it can occur in anyone regardless of age, race, or sex, it is most common in middle-aged men and is the most common type of cardiomyopathy in children.
Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. In hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, the heart muscle becomes abnormally thick particularly the left ventricle. This thickening makes it challenging for the heart to operate. It can affect anyone nevertheless, it is more severe in children. Mainly inherited from parents rather than acquired.
Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy. In this rare type, the muscle of the right ventricle is replaced by scar tissue. This is an issue as it causes heart rhythm problems. This is often caused by genetic mutations and mainly occurs in men.
Restrictive Cardiomyopathy. In restrictive cardiomyopathy, the heart muscle becomes rigid and loses its elasticity. This causes the heart to not be able to expand and fill in with blood in between heartbeats. It is the least common type of cardiomyopathy and most often affects the elderly. This condition can occur for no apparent reason (idiopathic) or it can be caused by a disease that affects the heart such as hemochromatosis.
Symptoms
In the early stages of cardiomyopathy and in children, there are typically no symptoms. However as the condition progresses, symptoms start appearing. These symptoms include:
● Breathlessness
● Swelling of the legs, ankles and feet
● Bloating of the abdomen
● Cough while lying down
● Fatigue
● Irregular heartbeat
● Chest discomfort or pressure
● Dizziness
● Fainting
● Lightheaded-ness
Many types of cardiomyopathy advances very quickly causing the symptoms to worsen as well.
Causes
Acquired Cardiomyopathy causes include:
● Infection with COVID-19
● Connective tissue disease
● Coronary heart disease
● Heart attack
● Diseases that can damage the heart
● Endocrine diseases
● Alcoholism
● Cocaine abuse
● Pregnancy complications
● Infections in the heart muscle
● ...and more!
Treatment
Some types of cardiomyopathy require no treatment as they do not have any symptoms nor signs. However, others do require treatments. The goal of the treatments are to prevent sudden death, control symptoms and to prevent the disease from advancing. These treatments include lifestyle changes (diet, physical activity, reduce stress, etc.), medications, surgery, etc.
Prevention
In most cases, cardiomyopathy cannot be prevented. However one can reduce one’s chances of being diagnosed with cardiomyopathy and other types of heart conditions by making healthy life choices such as:
● Avoiding the use of alcohol
● Avoiding cocaine usage
● Controlling high blood pressure, high cholesterol and diabetes
● Eating a healthy diet
● Exercising regularly
● Getting enough sleep
● Reducing stress
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