Dilated cardiomyopathy
By Anthony Kiely
How it effects you
DCM is when the left ventricle becomes dilated and saggy. It stops it from
pumping blood around the body effectively
This causes a build up of fluid around the body leading possibly to a
heart failure
This can also lead to other conditions in later stages but most can be
managed
Symptoms
DCM can take a while to be diagnosed by the time server symptoms occurs
Shortness of breath
Swelling of the ankles and abdomen
Excessive tiredness
Palpitations
Source : British heart foundation
How to diagnose
Doctors can do an echocardiogram which monitors your heartbeats.
Fitness tests can also help doctors diagnose the problem such as bleep
tests.
Symptoms as past said can however take a while
How to cure it
There is no cure of the disease at the moment.
Conditions which can come on as a result of the disease can be helped
by pacemakers, ICD and medication.
How will it effect
For the vast majority of people only minor adjustments are needed and most can
continue to drive a car and go to work. No heavy duty work though.
As with most heart conditions there is a slight increased risk of a heart attack.
Inheritance
If you as a parent have DMC then according to the BHF research you
have a 50% chance of inheriting it.
This is because it is caused by a faulty gene
And I thank you
Because this is a gloomy subject
Thank you
Produced by Anthony Kiely
Sourced mainly from The British Heart foundation
With help from BBC health and science (and a tiny bit from Wikipedia)
© Anthony Kiely 2013