Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy accounts for 11%-22% of sudden cardiac death cases in the young athlete population.
Systematic Review
This systematic review provides a comprehensive overview of the pathology, diagnosis, and management strategies for arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy.
Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy/dysplasia (ARVC/D) is a genetic form of cardiomyopathy (CM) usually transmitted with an autosomal dominant pattern. It primary affects the right ventricle (RV), but may involve the left ventricle (LV) and culminate in biventricular heart failure (HF), life threatening ventricular arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death (SCD). It accounts for 11%-22% of cases of SCD in the young athlete population. Pathologically is characterized by myocardial atrophy, fibrofatty replacement and chamber dilation. Diagnosis is often difficult due to the nonspecific nature of the disease and the broad spectrum of phenotypic variations. Therefore consensus diagnostic criteria have been developed and combined electrocardiography, echocardiography, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMRI) and myocardial biopsy. Early detection, family screening and risk stratification are the cornerstones in the diagnostic evaluation. Implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) implantation, ablative procedures and heart transplantation are currently the main therapeutic options.
Romero et al. (Tue,) conducted a systematic review in Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy/dysplasia (ARVC/D). Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy accounts for 11%-22% of sudden cardiac death cases in the young athlete population.