Hi there,
Has your husband been investigated to know the exact cause behind his LV Dysfunction? There are several reversible causes for
cardiomyopathy which if corrcted may lead to complete or partial reversal of this disorder.
The first and foremost is the Coronary Artery Disease. Other possible reversible causes may be Diabetes,
Thyroid disease, Alcohol, Certain Vitamin and otherdeficiencies (like Thiamine, Carnitine etc), Some heart rhythm disorders etc.
If such conditions have been ruled out, he might be suffering from what we call 'Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy' where no exact cause could be found.
If so, he may very well be benefitted with restriction of fluid and salts along with a combination of medications that should include a Loop Diuretic (Frusemide or Tosemide), an ACE-Inhibitor (Enalapril or Ramipril), a
Beta blocker (Carvedilol, Metoprolol or Bisoprolol), an
Aldosterone Antagonist (
Spironolactone or Epleronone) and sometimes if he is also having irregular pulses due to Atrial
Fibrillation, Digoxin.
Some cardiologists may also include an Oral Anticoagulants and Amiodarone to prevent complications like Cerebral Thromboemboilism and Life-threatening arrhythmias.
A very meticulous drug compliance under a close supervision of a cardiologist is mandatory for the best results.
In a majority of cases patients have good clinical outcome.
In a subset of cases, who have poor effort tolerence and repeated hospitalizations despite adhering to an optimum medical therapy for months, a device therapy called Cardiac Re-synchronization Therapy (CRT - P or CRT-D, the later also having a defibrillator feature) may be very useful.
In the worst case, the last resort is off-course a cardiac
transplantation.