Genes causing inherited forms of cardiomyopathies. A current compendium.

Cardiomyopathies (diseases of the heart muscle) are a relevant but heterogeneous group of cardiac diseases. The underlying structural myocardial alterations, detectable with contemporary cardiac imaging modalities and also on twelve-lead surface ECG, embody both linkage and differentiation of the respective clinical forms. Most of these are defined to the heart, however, cardiac involvement is also known in the presence of specific metabolic or muscular systemic diseases. In many of the known cardiomyopathies, a genetic background has been elucidated thus indicating a potential familial disease. This, in turn, also harbors the risk that more family members may be affected besides the index patient.