Cardiomyopathies: classification, diagnosis, and treatment

Bernhard Maisch1, Michel Noutsias, Volker Ruppert

  • 1Division of Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Philipps University, UKGM GmbH, Baldinger Street, 35043 Marburg, Germany. maisch@staff.uni-marburg.de

Heart Failure Clinics
|November 24, 2011
PubMed

Insights

Recent cardiomyopathy classifications aid clinicians in diagnosing structural heart muscle diseases. A logical approach, including endomyocardial biopsies, helps identify genetic, autoimmune, and viral causes.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiology
  • Pathology

Background:

  • Recent classifications of cardiomyopathies by the American Heart Association and European Society of Cardiology offer new clinical applicability.
  • Understanding causative factors is crucial for diagnosing familial and nonfamilial structural heart muscle diseases.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To comment on the clinical applicability of recent cardiomyopathy classifications.
  • To emphasize a diagnostic approach for identifying causative factors in cardiomyopathies.
  • To highlight the management of inflammatory and viral cardiomyopathies.

Main Methods:

  • Review of recent American Heart Association and European Society of Cardiology classifications.
  • Discussion on the role of endomyocardial biopsies in clinical scenarios.
  • Emphasis on a logical diagnostic approach for cardiomyopathies.

Main Results:

  • Clinicians can now identify genetic, autoimmune, and viral causative factors.
  • A thorough and logical approach facilitates diagnosis in patients with structural heart muscle diseases.
  • Management strategies for inflammatory and viral cardiomyopathies are discussed.

Conclusions:

  • Recent classifications enhance clinical applicability in diagnosing cardiomyopathies.
  • A systematic approach integrating biopsy findings aids in etiological diagnosis.
  • Effective management of inflammatory and viral cardiomyopathies is achievable.

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