What is idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (IDC)?
Idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (IDC) is a disease of unknown cause that results in an enlarged heart that does not pump properly. It is the most common reason people get heart transplants. Most people with IDC are between 20 and 50 years old when they first see a health care provider for their disease. How does it occur? The cause is not known. Because IDC tends to run in families, sometimes it is inherited. Virus infections of the heart muscle or an allergic response to some irritant could be other causes. What are the symptoms? IDC causes the heart chambers to dilate (expand). The heart itself may become very large, and the heart muscle gets thinner. The pumping of the heart gets weaker, and the circulation slows. IDC results in a heart that is too weak to circulate the blood properly. The most common problem is heart failure. The symptoms are shortness of breath with physical activity, waking from sleep at night short of breath, and swelling of the legs or ankles due to retention