Alcoholic cardiomyopathy (ACM) is a heart-muscle disease found in individuals with a history of long-term heavy alcohol consumption.
In general, initial signs of
Alcoholic cardiomyopathy (ACM) appear to be increased left ventricular mass along with increased posterior and septal wall thickening.
(10.)
Alcoholic cardiomyopathy. The New York Times Health Guide.
Alcohol consumed to excess over several years can produce an
alcoholic cardiomyopathy, in which alcohol acts as a toxin to weaken the heart muscle directly and hence may improve with abstention.
(2, 3) Initially, this was thought to be a manifestation of latent
alcoholic cardiomyopathy, but later studies in non-alcoholic patients and in experimental animal models revealed the same pattern of blunted cardiac contractile responsiveness.
Defects in the cardiovascular system appear in up to 50% of children diagnosed with FAS.2 Alcohol drinking can interfere with the normal functioning of the heart; a condition referred to as
alcoholic cardiomyopathy.
Alcoholic cardiomyopathy is a degenerative disease of the heart muscle characterised by a reduced capacity of the heart to pump blood (i.e., depressed cardiac output), reduced ability of the heart muscle to contract, and widening (i.e., dilatation) of all heart chambers.3 As the development of chick heart parallels that of the human heart,4 it has been used as a developmental model in various researches to study heart development and congenital heart defects.5
People who drink more than 10 units a day for 10 years are at a higher risk of
alcoholic cardiomyopathy - weakening of the heart muscles causing shortness of breath, bad circulation and heart failure.LIVERRESPONSIBLE for breaking down the alcohol in the body, but it takes one hour to eliminate one unit from the bloodstream.
KEY WORDS: chronic AODE (effects of AOD [alcohol or other drug] use, abuse, or dependence); alcoholic liver disorder; immune system; cardiovascular system; bone; breast; cancer;
alcoholic cardiomyopathy; heart disorder; cardiac arrhythmia
Deaths Alcohol-attributable condition Male Female Total Lip & Oropharyngeal Cancer 173 38 211 Oesophageal Cancer 304 65 370 Liver Cancer 171 63 234 Laryngeal Cancer 170 17 186 Breast Cancer 0 189 189 Alcoholic Psychoses 46 6 52 Alcohol Dependence Syndrome 416 117 533 Alcohol Abuse 70 21 91 Epilepsy 21 16 37 Alcoholic Polyneuropathy 0 0 0 Hypertension 23 7 30
Alcoholic Cardiomyopathy 69 4 73 Cardiac Dysrhythmias 56 48 103 Heart Failure & III-defined 8 5 12 Stroke 142 12 153 Oesophageal Varices 5 1 61 Gastro-oesophag.
Animal models also have helped researchers explore the mechanisms by which both short-term (e.g., binge) and long-term drinking can interfere with the function of the heart, a condition referred to as
alcoholic cardiomyopathy. Furthermore, animal models have provided substantial information on the causes of fetal alcohol syndrome.
The most convincing circumstantial evidence for
alcoholic cardiomyopathy is the extensive data, in animals and humans, of nonspecific cardiac abnormalities related to alcohol.