Just started treatment for suspected dilated cardiomyopathy, what can I do to help?

Wow 55% ejection fraction, my husband had 23% ejection fraction, that is dialated cardiomyopathy, but with careful walking, remember you must be able to keep up a normal conversation and no be tooo breathless, his ejection fraction has come back to 48%, cardiologists delighted, as they never expected him to survive the virus that caused his heart issues, nearly seven years later he walks 4 - 5kms each and every day, early in the morning before it gets tooo hot and humid, we are in queensland.

?I think your cardio is being super cautious, but with your fathers history I would think he would like to be cautious.

?Yes agree with you about reducing weight, my husband needs to get back on his diet, far to heavy presently.

?Get some help, husband did with counsellor about dealing with stress, he really had some big problems with anxiety in the first few months after diagnoses as it all came on sooo quickly, one day at work as a carpenter, and the next day in front of cardiologist and saying you are too sick to go to work.

?Bisoprolol - if it works for you, magic stuff, but I have also heard about people for whom it is a nightmare.

?Weight - get a diary and weigh yourself each and every day, first thing when you get up, toilet and then weigh, it is a really good indicator of you slipping into deeper problems ie congestive heart failure, has happened to husband a couple of times, in minium clothes, just follow the same pattern every day, and if your weight changes by more than 2 kilos get yourself to the hospital, and take your diary with you to show them your patterns.

?Blood pressure monitor - little ones at home you can buy from the local chemist, about $100.00 aud, again it has been a life saver for my husband, we were advised to get an Omron by consultant's senior registrar, and it is still going well nearly seven years later, do get it checked by comparision with local Dr's BP machine, to make sure it is reading correctly, one BP cuff on each arm, usually mine, as husband can get a little anxious.

?Education - I started on local library books, reading everything I could get my hands on about heart issues, some of it was usless, but some I must have absorbed, some of it very frightening, but I wonder where they got some of their information from, as nothing in these books fitted my husband exactly, I have gone on to read our local GP's cardiologiy book, and Dr to Dr papers on the internet, some again are useless, so I just kept reading, now when I get to the hospital I find myself using the correct medical terms, which gives the hospital staff the impression I am a nurse, but unless the outright ask me I don't bother to tell them, as I have found I have been able with my knowledge even pick up on mistakes nurses and Dr's have made in my husbands case, what really annoys me is they don't read his file, as his condition is fully documented by the senior cardiologist, I have even ended up growling at junior cardiologists in frustration, and telling them to go back to medical school, and later had the senior consultant cardiologist tell me I was right all along in my suspicions about what was wrong with my husband.

?Fluid - did you Dr advise you to restrict your fluid intake, husband was limited, not so much any more, but he can get seriously dehydrated on a really hot day, when he insists on mowing the lawn, or gardening, and forgets to take his drink bottle out to compensate for the extra sweat, blood pressure monitor will usually tell me if his blood pressure is way under what it should be, a cup of water every half hour, and his blood pressure comes back closer to the normal range, but I mustn't overload him with too much fluid in any one dose, once I was sooo worried I took him to the hospital, they were amazed he was even conscious his blood pressure was so low, but they did exactly the same as I did, drip at 250ml or a cup full each hour, dripped in slowly.

?Finally and enough - how did I know my husband had a heart issue when our GP said he was OK, first married 45 years, secondly sister who is a very senior nurse in a major hospital laughed and said you would know, your father had dialated cardiomyopathy, he had it when you were born and he died of it in the end, before our modern drugs were available.

?Best wishes from the wife of a cardio patient, look after yourself, follow your Dr's advice as we have tried our best to do.

 

Reducing that BMI will definitely make a difference, as will reducing your stress levels.  My father had a fatal MI at just 62, and he had risk factors including stress.

He had smoked when he was younger for about 14 years, but that is still too many years to expect to escape the medical wrath that would ensue from such a unhealthy habit.  He also liked to eat some things, like pepperoni, ice cream, and other unhealthy treats.

Agree with you, weight and diet control help you to reduce the chance of getting dilated cardiomyopathy.

My parents also have this issue, so I take it very serious. I’m almost 40 years old, and I’ve been jogging (slow) taking fish oil (Doctor recommends TG form fish oil to me because TG form has three times absorption rate than EE form.) for years. Research papers indicate that supplementation with omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids improved left ventricular function in patients with mild-to-moderate chronic heart failure due to dilated cardiomyopathy.

If you are considering fish oil, I recommend you Nature Spec.