Living with cardiomyopathy
in Health ·
Emily Diaz8 said:Hey.
If your friend has diagnosed obstructive cardiomyopathy, he’s actually quite lucky. If he goes through with the surgery, the symptoms usually vanish instantly, and he shouldn't face heart issues again—at least regarding the obstruction. Otherwise, the condition can progress, and the heart could weaken significantly.
There is one more thing to consider: in my experience, alcohol ablation is often recommended because hardly anyone performs a myectomy (removing the thickened part of the heart muscle) anymore. However, ablation isn't a permanent fix. Because of my age at the time (I was 45, whereas your friend is only 25), an outside specialist advised me toward a myectomy to resolve everything definitively. It’s been four years since my surgery, and the improvement in how I feel is hard to believe.
The reality is that there are very few places in the US where this specific surgery is performed with top-tier results—meaning you don't end up needing a defibrillator later, and the surgeon doesn't cut too much or too little muscle.
My advice: if he decides on surgery, do not leave it in the hands of a surgeon who rarely, if ever, performs this procedure.
Your best bet is to visit http://www.4hcm.org/hcma-the-organization/index.1.html. Everything you need to know about this disease is documented there; you’ll find answers to just about any question or dilemma.
Let me know if you need anything else.
Regards,
I would be so incredibly grateful for any extra information you could provide. My husband is in a very bad state right now, and I'm feeling quite lost about what steps to take or how to help him... and we are running out of time. Could you please help me with some contacts? This is urgent, truly.