Epidemiology of cardiomyopathies: essential context knowledge for a tailored clinical work-up

Cardiomyopathies (CMPs) are primary disorders of myocardial structure and function in the absence of coronary artery disease, hypertension, valvular disease, and congenital heart disease. Knowledge of the incidence and prevalence of CMPs may help clinicians to compare their observations in clinical practice with expected cases per person-year and to avoid under-reporting in clinical context. Currently, available estimates of prevalence and incidence of CMPs are based on clinical data, collected with a wide variability in population-source, and before the genetic testing evolved as a standard diagnostic tool. This review focuses on the epidemiology of CMPs in subjects aged between 18 and 55 years. A structured up-to-date diagnostic flow-chart for CMPs diagnosis and assessment is proposed to avoid misdiagnosis of CMPs in the young population and in subjects with unexplained cardiac disorders.