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Dilated cardiomyopathy - Symptom

Alternative Names

Cardiomyopathy - dilated

Symptoms:

Note: Symptoms of heart failure often develop gradually. Some chest pain may also be associated with this disease.

Signs and tests:

Cardiomyopathy is usually discovered when the doctor is examining and testing you for the cause of heart failure. Tapping over the heart with the fingers and feeling the area may indicate that the heart is enlarged. Listening to the chest with a stethoscope reveals lung crackles, heart murmur, or other abnormal sounds. The liver may be enlarged. Neck veins may be bulging.

Children will have poor growth, pale skin, difficulty feeding, and weak pulses in the legs and arms.

Heart enlargement, congestion of the lungs, decreased movement/functioning of the heart, or heart failure may show on these tests:

An ECG may show conduction disturbances or arrhythmias, including tachycardia, and may indicate enlargement of the ventricles. Heart biopsy may be helpful to distinguish dilated cardiomyopathy from other diseases. Lab tests vary depending on the suspected cause.

  • Reviewed last on: 9/3/2008
  • Larry A. Weinrauch, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Cardiovascular Disease and Clinical Outcomes Research, Watertown, MA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

References

Hare JM. The dilated, restrictive, and infiltrative cardiomyopathies. Zipes DP, Libby P, Bonow RO, Braunwald E, eds. Braunwald's Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine. 8th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2007: chap 64.

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