Alcoholic cardiomyopathy: diagnosis, symptoms, causes, treatment and prognosis

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Alcoholic cardiomyopathy is a secondary disease affecting the heart muscle. It develops as a result of the effects of ethanol on the myocardium. Chambers of the heart are stretched, thinned, gradually it begins to lose its functions. According to statistics, every second alcoholic alcoholic alcohol causes this dangerous disease. For 20% of them, such a diagnosis will result in a fatal outcome. And in 35% of cases, sudden death may occur.

Features of the disease

Toxic effects on the myocardium is exerted not only by ethanol itself, but also by acetaldehyde, to which it decomposes in the body. Depressing muscle cells, it interferes with the production of adenosine triphosphate, which is necessary for energy metabolism. The exchange of magnesium, calcium and potassium is also disturbed, which leads to the development of the first disturbances in work and myocardial dysfunction.

Ethanol destroys the heart cells by triggering the oxidation of lipids. But distinct signs of the disease can be seen only in 50% of cases, in the remaining patients they can not appear for a long time at all.

Alcoholic cardiomyopathy( photo)

Forms of

Alcoholic cardiomyopathy in 1977 was divided into several forms:

1. Pseudo-ischemic. Pain in the heart has a different degree of manifestation and different intensity, often accompanied by attacks of IHD.The pain syndrome can appear both after physical exercises, and at finding in rest. Often this phenomenon is accompanied with arrhythmia, swelling and fever.
2. Classical form. The patient has chronic alcoholism. Painful sensations are worried, mostly at night, accompanied by other characteristic disorders in the work of the heart. Signs of cardiodystrophy increase 2-3 days after drinking.
3. Arrhythmic form. Pain sensations are not so bright, but there is a wide range of rhythm disturbances - extrasystole, tachycardia, atrial fibrillation. Against this person, shortness of breath and dizziness disturb.

Stages of

The stages of the development of the disease were described in detail by the scientist Vasilenko. They are subdivided into:

• 1 stage. For 10 years, the disease manifests itself as periodic pain or arrhythmia.
• 2 stage. The active development of cardiomyopathy continues for more than 10 years of alcoholism. There are a number of symptoms inherent in pathology.
• 3 stage. It is accompanied by a severe form of heart failure. Disease irreversibly changes the structure of other organs, disrupting their functioning.

Causes of

A significant role in the causes of such a serious pathology is played by the amount of ethanol consumed per day( about 100 ml) and for a year( more than 8 liters). It is proved that in lesser amounts and with rare uses alcohol does not have a destructive effect on the myocardium. The risk of developing pathology always depends not only on the quantity, but also on the duration of the intake of alcohol.

Aggravated disease may occur if there is an organic heart disease. Consider other individual factors. For example, susceptibility to alcohol. This is why different people develop the disease from a different dosage and duration of admission.

Pro Diagnostic signs of alcoholic cardiomyopathy and its symptoms will be discussed later.

Symptoms of

Symptomatic of alcoholic cardiomyopathy is very extensive, but the first signs of the disease are not felt at the very beginning of its development. It happens, as a rule, about a week after drinking alcohol in large quantities. The person experiences the following symptoms:

• Shortness of breath. Accompanies even with a small load, with it it is impossible to make a full breath. Dyspnea is exacerbated in the supine position, so the patient is often forced to even sleep in a sitting position.
• Pain in the upper chest, often not too intense and wearing a different nature. Strengthens after alcohol and does not pass even when taking nitroglycerin.
• Enlarged liver, puffiness. Both of these signs are a vivid manifestation of the development of heart failure. In the right upper quadrant there is a heaviness.
• Various interruptions in the work of the heart muscle are very clear. This includes various sensations of fading, arrhythmia, cardiac arrest, rapid heartbeat. Sometimes there are also attacks of dizziness. Particularly bright such symptoms are manifested in persons with a protracted course of the disease, when the heart has already suffered severe injuries.

There is also a tremor of hands, fussiness, excitement, redness of the face, redness of the eyes.

Diagnosis

Diagnostic methods for alcoholic cardiomyopathy are very extensive. The following research measures are used:

1. Blood test, including biochemical;
2. ECG;
3. Urinalysis;
4. Echocardiography;
5. Scintigraphy;
6. X-ray.

On how it is treated, if you have diagnosed "alcoholic cardiomyopathy", the next section will tell.

Treatment of

Therapeutic way of

The first and most important measure in the treatment of alcoholic cardiomyopathy is precisely the elimination of alcohol. If the patient is unable to leave the addiction himself, he will be sent to a narcologist, where he will be picked up by a suitable method of getting rid of addiction. Therapy is long, in the most difficult situations it stretches even for several years. To achieve recovery of the myocardium is very difficult, so compliance with all the prescriptions of the doctor is the only way for the patient to save and prolong his life.

Correction is subjected to power. The daily set of products must contain the proper amount of essential microelements, vitamins, and proteins. It shows frequent walks and consumption of various oxygen cocktails to prevent the occurrence of oxygen starvation.

Drug medication

Alcoholic cardiomyopathy can adversely affect not only the work of the heart, but also other vital organs, so after a complete examination the doctor selects a whole complex of medicines. Their reception not only relieves the various symptoms, but also helps reduce the risk of sudden death. Completely it is not excluded.

• Various antioxidant agents are prescribed to prevent the oxidation of lipids. If the patient experiences arrhythmia, calcium antagonists may be prescribed. It is necessary to achieve and stabilize lysosomal membranes, for which use Parmidin or Essentiale.
• In the myocardium, the metabolism must be restored, so drugs are selected that can stimulate it, as well as push the cells to normal protein synthesis. For this purpose, not only special medicines, but also multivitamins are taken. And antihypoxants will prevent oxygen starvation.
• The body should be saturated with potassium. Preparations are introduced only with a deterioration of well-being, in other cases it is enough to maintain a diet saturated with this mineral. Beta-adrenoblockers are prescribed to prevent the effect of catecholamines. If the patient has heart failure, the treatment is selected according to the appropriate scheme.

Prevention of

disease Preventative methods include avoiding the abuse of alcoholic beverages. Not the last role is played by observance of a high-grade food as the heart muscle should be supplied not only with necessary microelements and vitamins, but also with protein.

Can an instant death occur with alcoholic cardiomyopathy, read on.

Causes of death in alcoholic cardiomyopathy

The onset of an instantaneous death can never be foreseen, as it depends on the severity of internal disorders. The cause of sudden death often becomes ventricular fibrillation.

Against the backdrop of alcoholic cardiomyopathy, chronic heart failure also occurs. The condition worsens gradually, so a lethal outcome can happen instantly over the next 3-4 years, especially if there is a regular libation.

More details about the causes of death due to the development of alcoholic cardiomyopathy on a specific example will be described by the following video:

Complications of

With a long course of the disease and the absence of any adequate therapy, a number of complications associated with it appear. These include:

1. thromboembolism,
2. sudden death,
3. heart failure,
4. ventricular fibrillation.

Forecast

Conditionally the prognosis remains unfavorable, since therapy is not able to reverse the development of alcoholic cardiomyopathy, but will only slow the development of morphological changes. In most cases, the survival rate of patients after 5 years is about 81%, which is the best indicator compared to conventional dilated cardiomyopathy.

A sharp deterioration in the prognosis is possible in the case of continued use of alcohol. For the disease, the weakening of the body by constant alcohol intoxication is favorable, so it develops very quickly. Death can occur in 3-4 years.

On a favorable prognosis they speak only under condition of early detection of the disease, when pathology does not yet give any symptoms.