Improved survival of idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy in the 1990s

To analyze the recent change in the long-term survival of patients with dil ated cardiomyopathy (DCM), the present study comprised consecutive 111 pati ents with ejection fraction <50% and left ventricular end-diastolic diamete r >58 mm, who were admitted to hospital from January 1983 to December 1994. The patients were divided into 2 groups: group A who were diagnosed before 1989 and group B diagnosed after 1990. Basic characteristics at diagnosis, including age, NYHA functional class, left ventricular end-diastolic diame ter and ejection fraction, were similar between these 2 groups. Calculated survival rate at 5 years was 90.0% in group B in contrast to 62.3% in group A. Event-free survival also improved in group B. In group B, beta-blockers and angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors were more frequently used tha n in group A (p < 0.0001) whereas digitalis and other positive inotropic ag ents were significantly less used. Left ventricular ejection fraction was s ignificantly improved during the follow-up period in patients treated with beta-blockers compared with those not treated with beta-blockers. These dat a indicate a significant improvement in the survival of patients with dilat ed cardiomyopathy after 1990, which may be explained by the change of medic al treatment, especially the use of beta-blockers.