title: Clinical characteristics of peripartum cardiomyopathy in the United States: diagnosis, prognosis, and management.
abstract: Peripartum cardiomyopathy is a pregnancy-associated myocardial disease characterized by the development of heart failure due to marked left ventricular systolic dysfunction. Although the disease is relatively uncommon, its incidence is increasing, and it can be associated with important and lasting morbidity and with mortality. Peripartum cardiomyopathy seems to affect women in different parts of the world but with considerable differences in clinical presentation. The purposes of this review are to describe the clinical profile of peripartum cardiomyopathy in the United States and to provide recommendations for the diagnosis and the management of this disease.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, USA. elkayam@usc.edu
authors.forename: Uri
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Elkayam
mesh_terms: D009202:Cardiomyopathies / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D016027:Heart Transplantation; D006801:Humans; D011225:Pre-Eclampsia / Q000175:diagnosis; D011247:Pregnancy; D011249:Pregnancy Complications, Cardiovascular / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D011379:Prognosis; D011644:Puerperal Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left