Left ventricular enlargement and dysfunction are fundamental components of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). DCM is a major cause of heart failure and cardiac transplantation. A wide variety of etiologies underlie acquired and familial DCM. Familial disease is reported in 20% to 35% of cases. A genetic substrate is recognized in at least 30% of familial cases. A recently proposed scheme defines DCM as a continuum of subclinical and clinical phenotypes. The evolution of classification systems permitted use of effective treatment strategies in disorders sharing the same structural and functional characteristics and common clinical expression. The major causes of death are progressive heart failure and sudden cardiac death secondary to ventricular arrhythmias or less commonly bradyarrhythmias. Remarkable progress has been made in survival owing to well-defined evidence-based therapies and appropriate guidelines for risk stratification and sudden cardiac death prevention measures. Neurohormonal antagonists and device therapy decreased all-cause mortality in adult patients with DCM. However, additional red flags in diagnosis have to be addressed in everyday practice, and cardiologists have to be aware of the subsequent effect on risk stratification and treatment plan. Genetic substrate cannot be modified, but the presence of a peculiar type of gene mutation modifies thresholds for implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) implantation. DCM is part of the spectrum of heart failure which is a syndrome with certain morphological and functional characteristics. Although significant progress has been achieved in the management of patients with DCM, it seems that the future treatments of this entity will be related to the specific pathological substrate.

Sudden death in the young is of cardiovascular origin in the majority of cases. A considerable rate of SD cases remains of unknown cause on post-mortem. Apart from channelopathies, subclinical forms of inherited structural heart diseases would appear to be implicated in SADS. Clinically guided genetic screening has a significant diagnostic yield and identifies affected families that would have been missed by the current suggested molecular autopsy panel.

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Inherited cardiovascular diseases are highly heterogeneous conditions with multiple genetic loci involved. The application of advanced molecular tools, such as Next Generation Sequencing, has facilitated the genetic analysis of these disorders. Accurate analysis and variant identification are required to maximize the quality of the sequencing data. Therefore, the application of NGS for clinical purposes should be limited to laboratories with a high level of technological expertise and resources. In addition, appropriate gene selection and variant interpretation can result in the highest possible diagnostic yield. Implementation of genetics in cardiology is imperative for the accurate diagnosis, prognosis and management of several inherited disorders and could eventually lead to the realization of precision medicine in this field. However, genetic testing should also be accompanied by an appropriate genetic counseling procedure that clarifies the significance of the genetic analysis results for the proband and his family. In this regard, a multidisciplinary collaboration among physicians, geneticists, and bioinformaticians is imperative. In the present review, we address the current state of knowledge regarding genetic analysis strategies employed in the field of cardiogenetics. Variant interpretation and reporting guidelines are explored. Additionally, gene selection procedures are accessed, with a particular emphasis on information concerning gene-disease associations collected from international alliances such as the Gene Curation Coalition (GenCC). In this context, a novel approach to gene categorization is proposed. Moreover, a sub-analysis is conducted on the 1,502,769 variation records with submitted interpretations in the Clinical Variation (ClinVar) database, focusing on cardiology-related genes. Finally, the most recent information on genetic analysis's clinical utility is reviewed.

Introduction Despite the pivotal role of left atrial (LA) function in a variety of cardiac pathologies, it has been studied mainly at rest. Aim Aim of the study was to assess the effect of semisupine exercise ergometry (Ex) on LA function, by volumetric and strain parameters and to interrogate relationships with left ventricular (LV) function and noninvasive hemodynamics. Patients and methods Eighty-two patients (female 26, age: mean/SD 61/15) referred for Ex were studied. The following parameters were estimated by 2 D echo: LV systolic (LVvolsyst) and diastolic (LVvoldiast) volume, ejection fraction (LVEF), stroke volume (LVsv), LA minimum (LAvolmin) and maximal volume (LAvolmax), LA emptying fraction [LAEF), LA reservoir volume (LAvolres = LAvolmax − LAvolmin), LA reservoir fraction (LAresFR = LAvolres/LVsv), LA conduit volume (LAcondvol = LVsv − LAvolres) and LA conduit fraction (LAcondFR = LAcondvol/LVsv). LV strain (LVSR) and LA strain (LASR) were estimated by 2D analysis. Peak tricuspid gradient (TRpg) was also estimated. Parameters were measured at rest R and Ex and the respective % changes (%d) were calculated. Results SBE performance was efficient with a % achieved target heart rate 73/9 and workload Watts 96/21. Systolic blood pressure increased from 139/53 to 179/31. Parameters with significant change during Ex are in the table (all p<0.001). LVSRr and LVEFr were both related inversely with LAvolresR (r=−0.39/p=0.001 and r=−0.24/p=0.05) and LAresFRr (r=−0.34/p=0.001 and r=−0.25/p=0.04). LVEFr was related inversely with LAcondRFr r=−0.24/p=0.04). LVSR was related inversely with LAvolresEx (r=−0.43/p=0.001). LVSREx was related inversely with LAvolresR (r=−0.24/p=0.04) and LAcondRFr (r=−0.25/p=0.04). The %dLVSR was related inversely with LAEFr (r=−0.25/p=0.04). The %dLVEF was related inversely with LAresFREx (r=−0.27/p=0.03) and LAcondRFr (r=−0.27/p=0.03). The % increase in TRpg during SBE was positively related with LAresFREx r=0.30/p=0.04 and inversely with LAcondFREx (r=−0.30/p=0.04) (Figure 1). Conclusion SBE induces LA dynamic changes in a spectrum of volumetric and strain indices. Dynamic changes of LV are related with reservoir and conduit LA function. LA reservoir and conduit function during SBE are related with the induced dynamic changes of pulmonary pressure, thus further supporting the clinical relevance of the respective evaluation. Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding sources: None.