Open AccessPeripartum Cardiomyopathy: A Contemporary Review
Author(s) -
Tina Shah,
Sameer Ather,
Chirag Bavishi,
Arvind Bambhroliya,
Tony Ma,
Biykem Bozkurt
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
methodist debakey cardiovascular journal
Language(s) - Uncategorized
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.552
H-Index - 23
eISSN - 1947-6094
pISSN - 1947-6108
DOI - 10.14797/mdcj-9-1-38
Subject(s) - medicine , webcast , medline , subject (documents) , medical education , library science , world wide web , computer science , political science , law
Peripartum cardiomyopathy is a rare and potentially fatal disease. Though approximately half of the patients recover, the clinical course is highly variable and some patients develop refractory heart failure and persistent left ventricular systolic dysfunction. It is diagnosed when women present with heart failure secondary to left ventricular systolic dysfunction towards the end of pregnancy or in the months following delivery, where no other cause of heart failure is found. Etiology remains unclear, and treatment is similar to other cardiomyopathies and includes evidence-based standard heart failure management strategies. Experimental strategies such as intravenous immunoglobulin and bromocriptine await further clinical validation.