What medication treatments for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy are available?
Often, drugs are used to treat symptoms and prevent further complications of HCM. Medications can help relax the heart and reduce the degree of obstruction so the heart can pump more efficiently. Beta-blockers and calcium channel blocker blockers are two classes of medications that may be prescribed. If you have an arrhythmia, your doctor may prescribe medications to control your heart rate or decrease the occurrence of arrhythmias.
You may be told to avoid certain medications, such as nitrates, because they lower blood pressure, or digoxin, because it increases the force of the heart's contraction.
Non-obstructive HCM symptoms may be treated with medications. If heart failure occurs, treatment is aimed at controlling it through heart failure medications and diet changes.
Your doctor will discuss which medications are best for you.
What Is Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy?
Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is associated with thickening of the heart muscle, most commonly at the septum between the ventricles, below the aortic valve. This leads to stiffening of the walls of the heart and abnormal aortic and mitral heart valve function, both of which may impede normal blood flow out of the heart.
What Are the Symptoms of HCM?
Many people with HCM 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 of HCM 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).
Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a condition in which the heart's function as a pump is inadequate to meet the body's needs. A poor blood supply resulting from congestive heart failure may cause the body's organ systems to fail, leading to a weakened heart muscle and fluid accumulation in the lungs and body tissue. There are many diseases that can impair pumping efficiency and symptoms of congestive heart failure including fatigue, diminished exercise capacity, shortness of breath, and swelling. Treatments include lifestyle modifications, medications, heart transplant, and therapy.
Hypothyroidism is any state in which thyroid hormone production is below normal. Normally, the
rate of thyroid hormone production is controlled by the brain at the pituitary.
Hypothyroidism is a very common condition and the symptoms of hypothyroidism are
often subtle.
Dizziness is a symptom that is often applies to a variety of sensations including lightheadedness and vertigo. Causes of dizziness include low blood pressure, heart problems, anemia, dehydration, and more. Treatment of dizziness depends on the cause.
Edema is the swelling of tissues as a result of excess water accumulations. Peripheral edema occurs in the feet and legs. There are two types of edema, non-pitting edema and pitting edema. Causes of pitting edema is caused by systemic diseases, most commonly involving the heart, liver, and kidneys. Local conditions that cause edema are thrombophlebitis and varicose veins. Edema is generally treated with medication.
Angina is chest pain that is due to an inadequate supply of oxygen to the heart muscle.
Angina can be caused by coronary artery disease or spasm of the coronary
arteries. EKG, exercise treadmill, stress echocardiography, stress thallium, and cardiac
catheterization are important tests used in the diagnosis of angina.
Palpitations are unpleasant sensations of irregular and/or forceful beating of the heart. Palpitations can be relieved in many patients by stress reduction, stopping cigarettes, and reduction of caffeine and alcohol.
Fainting, also referred to as blacking out, syncope, or temporary loss of consciousness has many causes. Often a person will have signs or symptoms prior to the fainting episode. Diagnosis and treatment depends upon the cause of the fainting or syncope episode.
Sudden cardiac arrest is an unexpected, sudden death caused by sudden cardiac arrest (loss of heart function). Causes and risk factors of sudden cardiac arrest include (not inclusive): abnormal heart rhythms (arrhythmias), previous heart attack, coronary artery disease, smoking, high cholesterol, Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome, ventricular tachycardia or ventricular fibrillation after a heart attack, congenital heart defects, history of fainting, and heart failure, obesity, diabetes, and drug abuse. Treatment of sudden cardiac arrest is an emergency, and action must be taken immediately.
A computerized axial tomography scan is an x-ray procedure that combines many x-ray images with the aid of a computer to generate cross-sectional views and, if needed, three-dimensional images of the internal organs and structures of the body. Computerized axial tomography is more commonly known by its abbreviated names, CT scan or CAT scan. A CT scan is used to define normal and abnormal structures in the body and/or assist in procedures by helping to accurately guide the placement of instruments or treatments.
A large donut-shaped x-ray machine takes x-ray images at many different angles around the body. These images are processed by a computer to produce cross-sectional pictures of the body. In each of these pictures the body is seen as an x-ray "slice" of the body, which is recorded on a film. This recorded image is called a tomogram. "Computerized Axial Tomography" refers to the recorded tomogram "sections" at different levels of the bod...
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