In order to hopefully treat and prevent recurrence of cardiomyopathy we need to understand and — if possible — remove the underlying causes and risk factors. We need to ask: "What else is going on inside the body that might allow cardiomyopathy to develop?"
Accurate diagnosis of the factors behind cardiomyopathy consists of three steps:
Cause | Probability | Status |
---|---|---|
Hypertension | 98% | Confirm |
Mercury Toxicity | 30% | Unlikely |
Diabetes II | 5% | Ruled out |
Cigarette Smoke Damage | 1% | Ruled out |
Muscular Dystrophy | 0% | Ruled out |
Have you been diagnosed with Cardiomyopathy? This is a potentially serious disease in which the heart muscle becomes weakened or enlarged and the heart is often dilated.
Possible responses:
→ Don't know→ No → Yes, but the condition is currently mild → Yes, condition is concerning but not advanced → Yes, I am close to heart failure |
Mercury levels in the heart tissue of individuals who died from Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy (IDCM) were found to be on average 22,000 times higher than in individuals who died of other forms of heart disease. [J Amer Coll Cardiology v33(6) pp.1578-83,1999]
The risk of being diagnosed with cardiomyopathy goes up with the number of cigarettes smoked per day. Although there is room for controversy, all doctors recommend that smokers with DCM quit smoking.
People with diabetes have been reported to be at increased risk of being diagnosed with DCM.
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is usually a hereditary disorder, although incidence of this form of cardiomyopathy may also be higher in people with hypertension. [Hypertension 1994;24(5): pp.585-90]