Takotsubo cardiomyopathy is a stress-induced condition mimicking acute myocardial infarction that predominantly affects postmenopausal women and generally resolves within a month.
This review summarizes 25 years of literature on Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, highlighting its clinical presentation, triggers, proposed mechanisms, and generally favorable prognosis.
We performed a comparative literature review, to elucidate the major features of the Takotsubo (stress) cardiomyopathy (TCM) collected in last 25 years. TCM is characterized by left- or biventricular apical ballooning with a clinical presentation, electrocardiographic abnormalities, and biomarker profils similar to those seen in acute myocardial infarction. Epidemiological studies have shown that TCM is more common in postmenopausal women; however exact figures are not available. The underlying aetiology is still largely undetermined. Elevated catecholamine levels, lack of estrogen, disturbed myocardial fatty acid metabolism and plaque rupture with spontaneous thrombolysis are potentially discussed mechanisms responsible for inducing a prolonged stunned myocardium. Strong emotional or physical stress is the most frequently described trigger in the literature. Therapy recommendations include appropriate antiplatelet treatment, β-blockers and ACE inhibitors. The abnormal kinetics usually resolve or improve within a month and carry a favorable prognosis in most cases. However, all the suspected complications of an acute myocardial infarction, including cardiogenic shock or lethal arrhythmias, may still occur.
Said et al. (2016) conducted a review in Takotsubo (stress) cardiomyopathy. Takotsubo cardiomyopathy is a stress-induced condition mimicking acute myocardial infarction that predominantly affects postmenopausal women and generally resolves within a month.