Question
I am 28 years old now, and the biggest problem troubling me is my weight. I now weigh over 200 pounds. Due to my obesity, I have developed cardiomyopathy. Can cardiomyopathy be cured?
Answer
Weight loss is the most effective long-term treatment for obesity-related cardiomyopathy. Effective weight loss can significantly improve many cardiac structural abnormalities and hemodynamics, lower blood pressure to a lower level. If maintained for 1-3 years, it seems that all obese patients will have lower systolic and diastolic blood pressures. With weight loss, blood volume, cardiac output, and body oxygen consumption during exercise decrease. However, heart rate, left ventricular end-diastolic pressure, pulmonary wedge pressure, systemic vascular resistance, and pulmonary artery pressure do not decrease during rest and exercise after weight loss. Reports indicate that weight loss can reverse the symptoms of congestive heart failure in patients with obesity-related cardiomyopathy, as well as those with obesity and sleep apnea/hypopnea syndrome.