What are the first symptoms of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in young people, and do these symptoms get worse if left untreated?

Answer

Marith,

A hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a hereditary heart disease in which the heart muscle becomes abnormally thick. Usually this can only be seen from puberty, when the heart is more or less fully grown. What you feel about it is very variable: some of the patients feel nothing at all until old age, another part has complaints of chest pain, abnormal shortness of breath or palpitations already in childhood. Since the predisposition to this disease is hereditary, it is recommended to investigate the immediate family when someone is diagnosed with this condition. In this way, a diagnosis can be made early (even before symptoms appear).

There is no known way to counteract the abnormal thickening of the heart muscle, but it is not recommended to practice intensive and competitive sports. A number of medicines can be used to reduce the symptoms of pain or shortness of breath. In extreme cases, recovery can also be achieved through a catheter or heart surgery.

If a hypertrophic cardiomyopathy has been diagnosed in one of your family members, it is best to have an echocardiography performed by a cardiologist. In most cases, this will make it clear whether or not you inherited the condition.