Further research is needed to better understand the value of genetic information in determining the prognosis of PPCM.” “PPCM has a mortality rate of 5 to 10 per cent, so being able to shed light on why it occurs in some women and not others is an important development and could ultimately save lives. Our results suggest that genetic diagnostics and family management may have similar value in PPCM.” The team decoded genes that can cause rare inherited forms of cardiomyopathy, and found that women with PPCM had a very similar genetic profile to patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) – a condition that runs in families.Ĭardiologist James Ware, Clinical Senior Lecturer in Genomic Medicine at the Medical Research Council’s (MRC’s) Clinical Sciences Centre (CSC), based at Imperial College, is lead author of the paper describing the results, which he described as encouraging news: “DCM is managed as an inherited condition: first degree relatives of affected individuals are offered genetic screening. The teams found that the 170 or so women they tested carried a higher number of genetic changes than normal. The cause is unknown, though theories about contributing factors include: an auto-immune response, undiagnosed heart damage, too much salt or too little selenium in the diet. Women who suffer from pre-eclampsia, those pregnant with twins, and older pregnant women are all known to be at higher risk of developing PPCM. Elsewhere there are geographic hotspots, including Nigeria and Haiti, where the number can be as high as 1 in 100. This can lead to death or the need for a heart transplant, and at the moment doctors don’t know who this will happen to.Īround 1 in every 1000 women in Europe and the US suffers from this condition, known as peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM). Around the time of childbirth the heart enlarges, and stops pumping properly – classic symptoms of heart failure. In some previously healthy women the heart just can’t cope. Normal pregnancy is a challenge for the cardiovascular system, with up to a 25 per cent increase in heart rate, and 50 per cent increase in the volume of blood pumped in a minute. In the future, preventative treatment might be developed too. They could then be monitored closely and treated more swiftly if needed. The finding provides some explanation for this mysterious condition, and suggests that by testing relatives, other women who carry the same genes, and who might face similar risks, could be identified early. Scientists including McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine affiliated faculty member Dennis McNamara, MD, Professor of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, and Director of the Heart Failure/Transplantation Program at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, have found that women who suffer unexplained heart failure towards the end of pregnancy or shortly after giving birth share certain genetic changes.
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