Cardiomyopathy occurs when your heart muscle isn’t doing its job to pump blood through the body. This heart disease is characterized by large, stiff or thick heart muscle that can’t pump blood effectively which eventually leads to the deterioration, or breakdown, of the muscle. In the most severe cases, this can lead to heart failure.
Pediatric cardiomyopathy is the leading cause of sudden cardiac death in kids under the age of 18 because it often presents no symptoms. This is why it is important to know your family’s medical history and be aware of anyone who has heart disease.
While there are many types, there are five main types of this heart disease.
Each type makes it difficult for your child’s heart to pump blood.
In most cases, the exact causes of cardiomyopathy in children remains unknown. Some common causes we are aware of include:
It’s important to know that your child might exhibit few to no signs of illness. Often this can be mistaken as a cold or flu. Some children are seriously affected by some of these symptoms:
With symptoms of cardiomyopathy being so varied, and with some children having no symptoms at all, there are many tests to help diagnose your child’s condition.
Some of the testings may include:
The treatment options that our pediatric cardiologists will explore depends on the exact type of cardiomyopathy and the symptoms your child has.
Schedule an appointment to see how our specialists can help your child.
The heart may be stretched out (dilated) or too thick (hypertrophied) but the main problem is ineffective pumping to the body.
Most children feel nothing, but it may feel like being tired or getting winded with activity.
For many types of cardiomyopathy, genetic testing can be done to try to identify a gene that may be the underlying cause of the cardiac problem.
Many children will feel no adverse effects of their cardiomyopathy. Some will have to take daily medication or may not be allowed to participate in competitive sports.
