What is the cause of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy?
The cause of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy is not yet known. In the majority of cases the condition is inherited. In others there is either no evidence of inheritance or there is insufficient information about the individual’s family to assess inheritance. In affected families the condition usually passes from one generation to the next and generations are not skipped. This pattern of inheritance is called dominant see Figure 2, and the condition may be passed on from affected males and females. FIGURE 2 A Family Tree This family tree shows four generations affected by Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. The condition is transmitted from one generation to the next without skipping a generation. This is called dominant inheritance. Each child of an affected person has a 50:50 chance of inheriting the condition. NEW DISCOVERIES Recently research has identified abnormalities in at least 6 related genes that are important in the development of heart muscle cells. The abnormality is known as a mutat
