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Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) Family Screening

• If you have HCM, the Center for Heart Failure recommends that your first degree adult relatives (parent, sibling, and children) be screened by seeing a physician and getting an electrocardiogram (ECG) and echocardiogram every 5 years.

• The large number of possible genetic mutations means that genetic testing for HCM is not generally practical for everyone, but there are common known mutations that can be tested for through a blood sample. The blood sample is sent to Correlagen®, a genetic testing company in Massachusetts, which is responsible for running the test. The cost of the test is billed to your insurance company and you are responsible for paying the cost that is not covered by insurance.

• Genetic testing is also available for the children of patients with HCM who are interested in learning whether their children have inherited the condition. For example, if you have HCM and the genetic abnormality is identified, your children can be tested quickly and relatively inexpensively by sending samples of their blood to Correlagen® to determine if they have the same abnormality.

Contact
For more information regarding HCM and available treatments, please contact the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at (866) 662-8467, or request an appointment online.

In addition, the most credible source of information about HCM is the Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Association (HCMA). Please visit the HCMA Web site.

Visit the Northwestern Memorial Hospital's Health Learning Center and Alberto Culver Women's Health Learning Center. These state-of-the-art health information libraries are among the largest hospital-based learning facilities of their kind. For more information call (312) 926-5465.

Review Date: 03/08