Pediatric cardiomyopathies: A review of literature on clinical status and meta-analysis of diagnosis and clinical management methods

Abstract

Cardiomyopathies define a heterogeneous group of heart muscle disorders. They are an important cause of heart failure and a leading indication for heart transplantation in pediatric patients. Research on cardiomyopathy has however focused on the adult populations with fewer dedicated clinical trials investigating pediatric cardiomyopathy. Diagnosis and clinical management of pediatric cardiomyopathy are also challenging because of the lack of specific methods for diagnosis and treatment. Assessment of ventricular structure using absolute values in adults are not useful in children because of their constantly changing body surface area. Therapies developed for adults applied to pediatric patients also have had varied clinical outcomes. This paper therefore reviews existing research evidence on pediatric cardiomyopathy, with the objective of broadening its clinical understanding and management. *Correspondence to: Aref Albakri, Department of Internal Medicine, St-Marien Hospital Bonn Venusberg, Germany, E-mail: arefalbakri@yahoo.com