Mortality from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in England and Wales: clinical and screening implications.

Abstract

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is considered a relatively common cause of death in the young. Screening for the disorder has been advocated, but its potential value cannot be assessed because the number of deaths in asymptomatic cases in the general population has not been investigated. We determined the annual number of deaths (and death rates) from hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in England and Wales according to age, sex and the presence or absence of symptoms so that an affected individual's risk of dying from the disorder and the implications of screening could be assessed.