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Question:
Please answer our questions about global hypokinesis.
My brother is suffering from global hypokinesis for the last 1.5 years. He is undergoing treatment in India and after 12 months of bed rest and medication, his EF (ejection fraction) has increased from 12% to 49%. After the improvement in his condition, the consultant has cut down the medicines and allowed him to join the job. He is a computer science professor and gives lectures to students in India. Now for the last 2 months he feels unwell (chest pain) again and EF has again gone down to 27%. So here is my question: can he get 100% cure from his suffering? How long a time may it take? Does he need to quit his job and take again bed rest for long time? Should his profession be changed (as he needs to speak in front of a large audience)? Please advise us. We are very much worried for him. He is also not a married person. Can he be able to live a normal life (married life) with this disease?
submitted by Dwipayan Das from Hyderabad, India on 2/5/2014
Answer:
by Texas Heart Institute cardiologist, Atasu Nayak, MD
Thanks. I do not know the cause of global hypokinesis of your brother. Is it due to coronary artery disease or nonischemic cardiomyopathy? The treatment is different depending on the etiology of weakness of heart muscle (global hypokinesis). I do not know his medications. He will need medications like ACE inhibitors, beta blockers, diuretics and spironolactone to strengthen his heart muscle. What is his age? If he is young and his weakness in heart function is irreversible, then he may be candidate for heart transplant. I would strongly advise him to see a cardiologist who is expert in congestive heart failure and transplantation.
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Updated February 2014
