Understand Your Risk for Cardiomyopathy
Cardiomyopathy can affect all ages and races, but certain types of the disease are more common in certain groups.
Dilated cardiomyopathy is more common in Black people than in white people. It's also more prevalent in men than in women. Teens and young adults are more likely than older people to have arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia, although it’s rare in both groups.
Major risk factors
Certain diseases, conditions or factors can raise your risk for cardiomyopathy. The major risk factors are:
- Family history of cardiomyopathy, heart failure or sudden cardiac arrest (SCA)
- A disease or condition that can lead to cardiomyopathy, such as coronary heart disease, heart attack or a viral infection that inflames the heart muscle
- Diabetes or other metabolic diseases, or severe obesity
- Diseases that can damage the heart, such as hemochromatosis, sarcoidosis or amyloidosis
- Long-term alcoholism
- Long-term high blood pressure
