Sudden cardiac death risk assessment

Abstract

Sudden cardiac death is a major issue in patients with HCM. The young are at particular risk for SCD, while those over 60 are less affected by SCD. There are five traditional risk factors for sudden cardiac death in patients with HCM, including: massively thick myocardium, unexplained syncope, family history of SCD due to HCM, nonsustained ventricular tachycardia, and hypotensive response to exercise. Currently, an ICD is recommended for resuscitated SCD and/or those with sustained ventricular tachycardia, and reasonable for those with massive hypertrophy (>3 cm), unexplained syncope and/or a family history of SCD, and also reasonable for patients with NSVT or abnormal blood pressure response to exercise, but usually when combined with other markers of heightened risk.