Becker muscular dystrophy-related cardiomyopathy: a favorable response to medical therapy.

Patients with Becker muscular dystrophy-related cardiomyopathy typically survive into their 30s, when they succumb to complications of cardiomyopathy or receive heart transplants. The cardiomyopathy is related to an abnormality in the protein dystrophin; no successful medical responses have been reported to date. We describe a patient with Becker muscular dystrophy-related cardiomyopathy in whom we noted improvement of cardiac status with carefully titrated medical therapy. Successful therapy suggests a trial of medical therapy may be beneficial when patients with Becker muscular dystrophy-related cardiomyopathy are evaluated for transplant.