Advances in Cardiomyopathies

International contributions with latest advances. The editors are well known all over the world as leading authorities in the field.

Introduction: Thirty Years of Cardiomyopathy.- I Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.- Evolution of Left Ventricular Hypertrophy in Patients with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.- The Natural History and Clinical Course of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.- Left Ventricular Systolic and Diastolic Function in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.- Radionuclide Assessment of Diastolic Function in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: Relation to Symptoms and Prognosis.- Ischemia, Coronary Blood Flow, and Coronary Reserve in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.- Left Ventricular Diastolic Function and Myocardial Ischemia in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: Assessment by Radionuclide Methods.- Sudden Death in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: Identification and Management of High Risk Patients.- Electrophysiologic Studies in Patients with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: Safety and Relation of Results to Clinical Findings.- Cerebral Embolic Risk in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.- Cytogenetic Studies in Familial Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: Identification of a Fragile Site on Human Chromosome 16.- Medical Treatment of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.- Surgical Results in Patients with Hypertrophic Obstructive Cardiomyopathy.- Utility of Intraoperative Echocardiography in Planning Surgical Strategy in Obstructive Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.- Rational Choice of Medical and/or Surgical Therapy in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.- Changes in Left Ventricular Hemodynamics of Hypertrophic Obstructive Cardiomyopathy (HOCM) Patients Treated with VAT Sequential Pacing.- Future Trends in Research in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy.- II Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- 1 Pathogenesis of Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Experimental Viral Myocarditis: Immunopathogenetic Aspects.- Dichotomous Effects of Cyclophosphamide in Murine Coxsackievirus B3-Induced Myocarditis.- Enterovirus RNA Sequences in Hearts with Dilated Cardiomyopathy: A Pathogenetic Link Between Virus Infection and Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- HLA Haplotype in Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy: Genetically Determined Immune Response Factors of Etiologic Importance?.- Humoral and Cell-Mediated Immunity: Pathogenetic Mechanisms in Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Biomolecular Changes in Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- The ?-Adrenergic Receptor-G Protein-Adenylate Cyclase Complex in Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Immune-Genetic Control of Anti-?-Receptor Antibodies in Human Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Catecholamines, ?-Receptors and Morphology in Dilated Cardiomyopathy: A Preliminary Report.- 2 Morphology of Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Histopathological Diagnosis of Acute Myocarditis and Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Ultrastructural Changes in Myocarditis and Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Diagnostic and Prognostic Value of Immunofluorescence and Electron-Microscopic Findings in Idiopathic Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- 3 Clinical Aspects and Treatment of Myocarditis.- Natural History of Viral Myocarditis: Critical Viewpoints.- Clinical Presentation and Evolution in Treated and Untreated Myocarditis.- Immunosuppressive Therapy in Active Myocarditis.- Immunosuppressive Therapy in Myocarditis - 24-Month Follow-up.- 4 Clinical Aspects of Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Natural History and Prognosis of Overt Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Myocardial Perfusion and Metabolism in Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Complex Ventricular Arrhythmias in Dilated Cardiomyopathy: A Multicenter Italian Experience.- Essential Ventricular Arrhythmias: An Early Step Toward Cardiomyopathy?.- Role of Radionuclide Angiography in the Diagnosis of Early Ventricular Dysfunction in Patients with Complex Ventricular Arrhythmias.- ItalianMulticenter Cardiomyopathy Study Group.- Dilated Cardiomyopathy in Children.- Anatomoclinical Aspects of Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy.- Right Ventricular Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy: The Clinical Point of View.- Arrhythmologic Study in Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Dysplasia: Prognostic Implications in Fifty Patients.- 5 Treatment of Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Positive Inotropic Therapy for Chronic Dilated Cardiomyopathy and Congestive Failure.- Vasodilator Therapy for Cardiomyopathy.- Beta-Blockade in Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Role of Antiarrhythmic Treatment in Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Cardiac Transplantation for Dilated Cardiomyopathy.- Long-Term Treatment with Amiodarone for the Prevention of Sudden Death in Patients with Dilated Cardiomyopathy.