Treatment of Familial Heart Disease

The treatment objectives will depend on the disease, but in general, treatment aims to prevent sudden cardiac death and improve quality of life by preventing symptomatic cardiac arrhythmias, preventing heart failure and halting progression of the disease. 

This is why it is always important to avoid triggering factors (such as intense physical exercise, ionic disturbances, etc.) according to the disease. Secondly, there are a number of drug treatments that can reduce the risk of arrhythmia and the probability of developing heart failure. 

If, despite taking more conservative measures, a patient is considered to be at high risk of malignant arrhythmia and sudden death, an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator should be considered. 

Other available treatments used in selected patients (depending on their disease type and severity) include: left sympathectomy, arrhythmia ablation, septal myectomy, alcohol septal ablation, pacemaker implantation, cardiac resynchronisation therapy, ventricular assist device implantation and heart transplantation.