Diagnostic Approach to Left Ventricular Hypertrophy: A Review

Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is a not uncommon finding on cardiac imaging, seen in 10-20% of adults. LVH can represent a response to a physiological load on the heart (either by athletic training, hypertension, or structural heart issues) or it can represent a primary pathology (e.g. infiltrative disorders, including cardiac amyloidosis and sarcoidosis) or familial/genetic conditions (e.g. hypertrophic cardiomyopathy). LVH is an independent risk factor for adverse cardiovascular events, regardless of its etiology. In this review, we survey the etiologies, clinical approach, and use of multimodality imaging in those with LVH.