Genetic heart disease. Christine E. Seidman, MD, Director of the Cardiovascular Genetics Center at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, describes how genetic changes can lead to an increase risk of heart disease in families.

Brigham and Women's Hospital is one of the first institutions to pioneer the diagnostic testing of patients who are at risk for genetic forms of heart disease, including hypertrophic and dilated cardiomyopathies. A single blood test can determine if an individual has a genetic variant that will lead to heart disease. If the patient has the genetic variant, heart specialists at Brigham and Women’s Hospital can intervene through the use of medications, medical devices, surgery and in some cases heart transplantation.

For example, in some patients with cardiomyopathies, in particular hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, the disease thickens the heart muscle in a way that really inhibits normal blood flow out of the heart and to all of the organs. These patients can be treated in several ways. Cardiothoracic surgeons can remove a small piece of that tissue to improve the flow of the blood and reduce symptoms quite dramatically or do a less invasive cardiac catheterization.

In patients who have dilated cardiomyopathy, heart function is reduced. Surgeons can restore heart function by implanting an assist device, allowing patients to go on with their daily living activities

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