Patients with symptomatic oHCM may present with chest pain, fatigue, exertional dyspnea, palpitations, dizziness, and syncope.2 Symptom progression can be gradual — patients may be doing worse than they realize by adapting their daily routine to manage their condition.2-5 These adaptations can result in patients living according to their limitations and also make recognition of symptoms more difficult.1,4 Ultimately, their decreased physical activity and anxiety over the condition can have a negative influence on a patient’s quality of life.1
Because HCM is estimated to be underdiagnosed* there may be more people with the condition than suspected.6 Currently, the estimated prevalence of HCM ranges between 1 in 200† to 1 in 500‡ people in the general population.7,8 The majority of HCM cases are obstructive and among these patients, 66% are symptomatic.9 When patients are diagnosed it may be as late as young adulthood, or in mid-life, (median age at diagnosis, 45.8 years, SHaRe Registry) when the disease has progressed.10
This can result in serious complications such as NYHA Class III/IV heart failure (~43%), atrial fibrillation (18-28%), stroke or other thromboembolism (~6%), and rarely, sudden cardiac death (<1%/year).11-13 Obstructive HCM can even progress while patients are on treatment which can also contribute to these complications.14
HCM=hypertrophic cardiomyopathy; oHCM=obstructive HCM.
When Dani was diagnosed with symptomatic obstructive HCM, she was first prescribed an oral medication. When her symptoms and obstruction didn’t improve she eventually needed open-heart surgery, a myectomy.
Her symptoms did improve initially but within a matter of months, Dani was symptomatic again, and her obstruction had returned. How would you counsel a patient like Dani?
Dani was compensated for
her time.
ACC=American College of Cardiology; AHA=American Heart Association.
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