The dynamics between mitral anulus motion, and, thus, motion of the base of the heart, and filling of the left atrium and ventricle were studied by Doppler echocardiography in 12 normal subjects and 28 patients with dilated cardiomyopathy. The normal motion of the mitral anulus is associated with two phases of inflow from the pulmonary veins. The first phase (J) of pulmonary venous inflow occur...

ilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), characterized by left venricular dilation and systolic dysfunction, is the most comon form of heart muscle disease, comprising 60% of the ases of identified cardiomyopathies (1). The disorder is linically heterogeneous, ranging from affected individuals ith clinical presentations of severe symptoms, including eart failure, sudden death, or resuscitated sudden death,...

In majority of the cases familial dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is inherited in an autosomal dominant manner. In rare instances, this condition is inherited in an autosomal recessive pattern. In other rare cases, DCM can be inherited in an Xlinked pattern. Establishing a genetic diagnosis confirms or modifies the clinical diagnosis and enables disease specific estimates on prognostics and treatm...