Arrhythmic risk stratification in non-ischaemic dilated cardiomyopathy.

ABSTRACT

Dilated cardiomyopathy is a primary disease of the heart muscle, which affects relatively young patients with a low comorbidity profile. It is characterized by structural and/or functional abnormalities leading to systolic dysfunction of the left ventricle or of both ventricles, often associated with dilatation, in the absence of an ischaemic, valvular, or pressure overload cause sufficient to explain the phenotype. Although the prognosis of the disease has greatly improved over the last few decades, prognostic stratification remains a fundamental objective, especially about the prediction of potentially life-threatening arrhythmic events. An accurate diagnostic work-up and an appropriate aetiopathogenetic characterization affect the patients' outcome and represent the essential basis of an adequate prognostic stratification. It is necessary to adopt a multiparametric approach, especially when the aim is the prediction of arrhythmic risk; it includes an integration of medical history and physical examination with cardiac imaging and genetic testing, in order to obtain a personalized diagnosis and therapeutic strategies. Furthermore, the evaluation should be repeated at every clinical check-up, considering the dynamic trend of the pathology and the arrhythmic risk changes over time. This article aims to illustrate how, starting from an exhaustive aetiological and clinical-instrumental characterization, including all diagnostic methods available at present time, it is possible to obtain a tailored diagnostic evaluation and stratification of the arrhythmic risk as accurate as possible.