Congress abstract

ized by worsening left ventricular contractility and increased myocardial fibrosis.It is suggested that abnormal cardiac sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activity may also contribute to the increased occurrence of arrhythmias, including complex ventricular arrhythmia; however, detailed studies, particularly in DCM, are lacking.Therefore, this study aim was to analyse the relationship between arrythmias and cardiac SNS activity, assessed using single-photon emission computed tomography with 123 I-meta-iodobenzylguanidine (SPECT-MIBG) in DCM. Material and methods: Twenty-one newly diagnosed (< 6 months) consecutive DCM patients [mean age 47.2 ± 10.2 years, 90% male, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) 29.5 ± 8.7%, left ventricular end-diastolic volume (LVEDV) 114.3 ± 35.9 mL/m 2 , New York Heart Association (NYHA) 1.8 ± 0.58] with stable HF symptoms (NYHA I-III for at least 2 weeks), underwent SPECT-MIBG imaging and 48-hours electrocardiogram (ECG) monitoring.DCM was diagnosed in case of LV enlargement and impaired systolic function, in absence of (a) significant coronary artery disease, (b) primary heart valve disease, (c) congenital heart disease, and (d) severe arterial hypertension.15 minutes and 4 hours after intravenous injection of MIBG, planar anterior and lateral images of the chest were acquired.A region of in-