Alcoholic cardiomyopathy

Description:

Alcohol has powerful toxic effect on all organism.

As ethanol tropine to cells of a human body, a cell easily respond to ethanol, becoming a target for its destructive action.

The key product of disintegration of alcohol — acetic aldehyde — finishes cells, destroying their mitochondrions and lysosomes. The first heart cells begin to suffer.

If to look at heart of systematically drinking person, then it is possible to see the friable, stretched cardiocytes which cannot recover the former structure because of a set of disturbances at the cellular and subcellular level. And then the alcoholic cardiomyopathy, a disease which in the people call "beer" or "bull" heart develops.

Reasons of an alcoholic cardiomyopathy:

Alcoholic cardiomyopathy — one of the few cardiomyopathies which etiology is clear. And here the pathogeny — that is as well as from what the cardiomyopathy of this kind develops — is not clear still.

Scientists found a certain communication between toxic effects of acetic aldehyde, including the calcium ions concerning transport and other substances necessary for normal life activity of cardiomyocytes, and epidemiology of an alcoholic cardiomyopathy. But all attempts to see at what level process of expansion of cells begins, and afterwards and heart cameras while are unsuccessful.

Symptoms of an alcoholic cardiomyopathy:

"Silent killer" — quite suitable term for an alcoholic cardiomyopathy. Symptomatology and really so silent that in 5 — 7 years from the beginning of a disease, the signs in the slightest degree guarding appear only at a half of patients. They complain of an asthma — at first at an exercise stress, eventually and when performing ordinary affairs, somehow rise on a ladder, carrying products, mopping.

About a half of patients complain of the periodic rises in arterial pressure which are not connected with external occasions. Others early begin to notice that "heart fades", fights unevenly — "jumps", slows down a rhythm. These are symptoms of premature ventricular contraction and other disturbances of a cordial rhythm.

Right ventricular insufficiency develops approximately by fifth year of a disease, and strange cough, puffiness of the person, hands and legs begins with complaints to an asthma in a prone position.

Diagnosis:

The burdened toxicological anamnesis — here that forces the doctor to think of an alcoholic cardiomyopathy. For confirmation of the diagnosis appoint an ECG, a X-ray analysis of a thorax and an angiography of vessels of heart. In doubtful cases carry out heart catheterization with an endocardial biopsy.

Treatment of an alcoholic cardiomyopathy:

Treatment — full refusal of alcohol. Only it increases chances of recovery or permanent remission more than in 60% of cases. Other symptomatic treatment: diuretic, vasodilators, cardiotonics, vitamins and mineral additives.

Forecast. Moderately favorable — on condition of refusal of alcohol,  observance of the mode of life and work, exercise and psychological stresses,  and adequate drug treatment. Within five years more than 75% of patients survive.