My father has Cardiomyopathy,how serious is it?

Answer 1

I have Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. I don't know if that is the same kind that your father has, but it is characterized by a thickening between the two chambers of the heart. There is no cure but there is medicine to help keep it under control. Sometimes if the muscle gets too thick heart surgery is necessary, but don't freak out yet! Ask your father how bad it is. Sometimes you can live a completely normal life with it. However, strenuous activity is not really a good idea with HC. Strenuous activity can make the heart race and cause a electrical problem within the heart which can cause fainting or perhaps more.

Answer 2

The first question you need to ask is what is his E.F.(Ejection Fraction) this will tell you how bad it has gotten. If its under 15 they will immediately start trying to find a transplantable heart that will fit him. If he s not to old and fits into their guidelines. If its any higher, but below 50, they can do a bunch of different things. They will most likely consider implanting an ICD(pacemaker/defibbrillator) and start him on some pretty heavy meds. When mine was diagnosed, my ef was between 15 and 20. They talked with me about a transplant, but they put me on blood thinners, Coreg, Diovan, furosemide, lasix, and they put the ICD in me. My EF has gone all the way up to between 45-50 and the doctors are calling me a miracle man. Im 34 years old and and it was ideopathic cardiomyopathy. The coreg has been the leader of help in my case and has caused the majority of the improvement. Its been a rough road, but they say the outlook for me is good! Hope that helps a bit!

Answer 3

It depends on the underlying cause for the cardiomyopathy, the degree to which the heart is enlarged and weakened, the patients other associated health problems, and whether the underlying cause for the cardiomyopathy can be treated. This can be very serious. You need to talk with the patient's physician---with the patient's permission---to garner an answer to your question. I would suggest you go with your father to his next appointment. I personally really appreciate it when my patients have supportive family.

Answer 4

Cardiomyopathy, which literally means "heart muscle disease", is the deterioration of the function of the myocardium (i.e., the actual heart muscle) for any reason. Cardiomyopathy of any cause typically leads to signs and symptoms of heart failure as the pumping efficiency of the heart is diminished. People with cardiomyopathy are often at risk of arrhythmia and/or sudden cardiac death.

sorry

Answer 5

That word translates to "heart muscle disease." Its not a good thing to have, but its impossible for us to know how serious it is without asking his doctor.

One of my uncle's had a severe infection which caused cardiomyopathy. He has health problems because of it to this day, but he's alive and kickin' . Its been about 10 years since that happened

Answer 6

It really depends on how severe. Most patients end up with a pacemaker and life goes on, but if it's really serious he would need a heart transplant. If he's pretty old they probably wouldn't give him one, I'm afraid. Still, it will probably be okay. Read:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cardiomyopathy

Answer 7

Very. Any time your heart is inflamed, its pumping efficiency is lessened, potentially resulting in clots (common), causing murmurs or palpitations (also common), to being downright fatal. It can be managed with drugs called beta blockers (which basically slow the heart down and lower blood pressure), as well as so-called "clot busters" to prevent and/or treat blood clots.

Of course, your father's doctor has the best advice, and his is the only advice you should follow.

Good luck to you and your father.

-Daniel

Answer 8

ask his doctor