Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) diagnosis may be difficult because of its varied clinical presentation1,2

HCM symptoms can be debilitating, often overlapping with those of other diseases and conditions1,2

Criteria Clinical presentation
Common
symptoms
of HCM1,2
  • Angina
  • Dyspnea
  • Palpitations
  • Syncope
  • Fatigue
  • Exercise intolerance
Overlapping
diseases/
conditions1
  • Arrhythmias (e.g., atrial fibrillation)
  • Aortic stenosis
  • Hypertensive heart disease
  • Coronary artery disease
  • Infiltrative cardiomyopathies (i.e., amyloidosis, Fabry disease)
  • Athlete’s heart
  • Asthma/COPD
Criteria Common symptoms of HCM
Clinical presentation
  • Angina
  • Dyspnea
  • Palpitations
  • Syncope
  • Fatigue
  • Exercise intolerance
Criteria Overlapping diseases/conditions
Clinical presentation
  • Arrhythmias (eg, atrial fibrillation)
  • Aortic stenosis
  • Hypertensive heart disease
  • Coronary artery disease
  • Infiltrative cardiomyopathies (ie, amyloidosis, Fabry disease)
  • Athlete’s heart
  • Asthma/COPD
Category Social
Patient activity
  • Work: patients reported that their HCM symptoms had an impact on their ability to work2,5
  • Relationships with family2
  • Relationships with friends/others2
  • Limited ability to travel, engage in social activities as well has impacted physical relationships - all leading to an impaired quality of life2

25%

of patients are not diagnosed with HCM for at least 3 years3

  • Despite it being the most common genetic heart disease,1 at least 85% of Americans with HCM are likely undiagnosed2,4
  • Patients are also commonly asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic, which adds to the challenges in diagnosis1,2

Identifying HCM, a disease with diverse symptomatology, is the crucial first step in a successful patient journey1,2

Optimizing diagnosis

References

Hide references
  1. Naidu, Srihari S, editor. Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. Second ed., Springer International Publishing, 2019.
  2. Ommen SR, et al. 2020 AHA/ACC guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Joint Committee on Clinical Practice Guidelines. Circulation. 2020;142(25):e558-e631.
  3. Salberg L, et al. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy: a heart burden and challenging diagnosis. Value Health. 2016;19(3):A52.
  4. Maron MS, et al. Occurrence of clinically diagnosed hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in the United States. Am J Cardiol. 2016;117(10):1651-4.