Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy

In simplistic terms, this is an inherited condition which is diagnosed by finding an abnormally muscular heart (ventricular hypertrophy) without an obvious cause to explain the increased muscularity. It is caused by mutations in the genes that encode components of the contractile apparatus of the heart and therefore the heart muscle itself is abnormal and this is why it looks thicker. One thing to [...]

The More Muscular Looking Heart

The heart is a muscle and as with any muscle, when it has to work against a higher pressure over a prolonged period of time, it becomes more muscular. This increased muscle mass is seen as an increased thickness in the walls of the heart and is known as hypertrophy. Doctors sometimes erroneously refer to this as an enlarged heart. This is not true - the heart is not bigger but it is heavier; the w [...]

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