Heart Disease: Dilated Cardiomyopathy
What Is Dilated Cardiomyopathy?
Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a condition in which the heart's ability to
pump blood is decreased because the heart's main pumping chamber, the left
ventricle, is enlarged and weakened; this causes a decreased ejection fraction
(the amount of blood pumped out with each heart beat). In some cases, it
prevents the heart from relaxing and filling with blood as it should. Over time,
it can affect the other heart chambers as well.
What Are the Symptoms of DCM?
Many people with DCM have no symptoms or only minor symptoms, and live a
normal life. Other people develop symptoms, which progress and worsen as heart
function worsens.
Symptoms can occur at any age and may include:
- Chest pain or pressure (occurs usually with exercise or physical activity,
but can also occur with rest or after meals).
- Heart failure symptoms (shortness of breath and fatigue).
- Swelling of the lower extremities.
- Fatigue (feeling overly tired).
- Weight gain.
- Fainting (caused by irregular heart rhythms, abnormal responses of the blood vessels during exercise, or no cause may be found).
- Palpitations (fluttering in the chest due to abnormal heart rhythms).
- dizziness or lightheadedness.
- Blood clots due to blood flowing more slowly through the body. If a blood
clot breaks off, it can be carried to the lungs (pulmonary emboli), kidney
(renal emboli), brain (cerebral emboli or stroke), or limbs (peripheral emboli).
What Causes DCM?
Dilated cardiomyopathy can be inherited, but it is primarily caused by a variety of other factors, including:
- Severe coronary artery disease
- Alcoholism
- Thyroid disease
- Diabetes
- Viral infections of the heart
- Heart valve abnormalities
- Drugs that are toxic (or cause damage) to the heart
Rarely, it can occur in women after childbirth (postpartum cardiomyopathy).
When there is no known cause, the condition is called idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy.
Next: How Is Dilated Cardiomyopathy Diagnosed? »
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