Cirrhotic Cardiomyopathy—A Veiled Threat

Abstract

Cirrhotic cardiomyopathy (CCM) is defined as cardiac dysfunction in patients with liver cirrhosis without preexisting cardiac disease. According to the definition established by the World Congress of Gasteroenterology in 2005, the diagnosis of CCM includes criteria reflecting systolic dysfunction, impaired diastolic relaxation, and electrophysiological disturbances. Because of minimal or even absent clinical symptoms and echocardiographic signs at rest according to the 2005 criteria, CCM diagnosis is often missed or delayed in most clinically stable cirrhotic patients. However, cardiac dysfunction progresses in time and contributes to the pathogenesis of hepatorenal syndrome and increased morbidity and mortality after liver transplantation, surgery, or other invasive procedures in cirrhotic patients. Therefore, a comprehensive cardiovascular assessment using newer techniques for echocardiographic evaluation of systolic and diastolic function, allowing the diagnosis of CCM in the early stage of subclinical cardiovascular dysfunction, should be included in the screening process of liver transplant candidates and patients with cirrhosis in general. The present review aims to summarize the most important pathophysiological aspects of CCM, the usefulness of contemporary cardiovascular imaging techniques and parameters in the diagnosis of CCM, the current therapeutic options, and the importance of early diagnosis of cardiovascular impairment in cirrhotic patients.