J Clin Med 2022 Jan 24;11(3). Epub 2022 Jan 24.
Cardiovascular Imaging Unit and Inherited Cardiovascular Diseases Unit, Cardiology Department, Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron, Vall d'Hebron Institut de Recerca, 08035 Barcelona, Spain.
Cardiomyopathies are a group of structural and/or functional myocardial disorders which encompasses hypertrophic, dilated, arrhythmogenic, restrictive, and other cardiomyopathies. Multimodality cardiac imaging techniques are the cornerstone of cardiomyopathy diagnosis; transthoracic echocardiography should be the first-line imaging modality due to its availability, and diagnosis should be confirmed by cardiovascular magnetic resonance, which will provide more accurate morphologic and functional information, as well as extensive tissue characterization. Multimodality cardiac imaging techniques are also essential in assessing the prognosis of patients with cardiomyopathies; left ventricular ejection fraction and late gadolinium enhancement are two of the main variables used for risk stratification, and they are incorporated into clinical practice guidelines. Read More