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Incidence of Childhood Dilated Cardiomyopathy in Sweden From 1991 to 2019: A National Population-Based Study
Shalan Fadl1,2, Stefan Särnblad1, Tahir Taj3
1Department of Paediatrics, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden.
Aim:
To study the incidence, survival, and mortality of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in children in Sweden, 1991-2019.
Methods:
Hospital records of 0-18-year-olds diagnosed with DCM over a 29-year period were reviewed. The annual sex-specific incidence rates of DCM were calculated as new disease cases, divided by the average Swedish same-sex population for each year between 1991 and 2019.
Results:
Altogether 377 patients were identified, 204 (54%) male and 173 (46%) female. The annual incidence rate of DCM over the study period was 0.62/100 000 person-years. The incidence rate was 5.98/100 000 persons in patients < 1 year old compared with 0.33/100 000 in 1-18-year-olds. Linear regression analysis revealed no change (p = 0.82) in the incidence of DCM over the 29-year period. Among children with a clinical diagnosis and available follow-up (n = 268), the mortality rate was 23%. Children aged > 10 years at diagnosis experienced an increased risk of death compared with children ≤ 3 months of age at diagnosis (hazard ratio 1.92). The heart transplant rate was 26%.
Conclusions:
In this national study, we found an incidence rate of paediatric DCM of 0.62/100 000 person-years in Sweden. The mortality risk was highest in children > 10 years old at diagnosis.
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