Heart disease inherited from parents? Recognize genetic factors

Unexpectedly, there are many heart diseases that are inherited genetically. Abnormalities (mutations) in just one gene can put a person at risk of heart disease. These mutations can be passed from parent to child. One example is coronary heart disease, a disease that causes heart attacks and is also influenced by genetic factors.

How is the disease inherited?

Genes are the inheritors of traits that are the keys for cells to carry out body functions and shape the human physique. Each individual has more than 20,000 genes, and each gene consists of two copies: one copy inherited from the mother and one copy inherited from the father. Mutations in just one gene can give rise to diseases that can be passed on to future offspring.

Most heart diseases are inherited in an autosomal dominant pattern. The chance of passing on a heart disease gene or a normal gene to a child is 50% (Figure). On average, half of family members with autosomal dominant heart disease will develop the disease. 

Image: In this example, the father carries the heart disease gene (stripes), which is autosomal dominant, while the mother has the normal gene (black). There is a 50% chance that their children will have the heart disease gene, namely children 1 and 3.

What are and gow are the symptoms of inherited disesases?

Cardiomyopathy is a disorder of the heart muscle consisting of abnormalities in thickening (hypertrophy) and widening (dilation), which affect the weakness of the heart's function. Cardiomyopathy has symptoms of heart swelling such as fatigue, shortness of breath, chest pain when doing activities, shortness of breath when sleeping on your back without a high pillow, and swelling of the legs and stomach.

Heart rhythm disorders (arrhythmias) such as Brugada syndrome and long-QT syndrome cause symptoms such as chest palpitations, dizziness, fainting, shortness of breath, and chest pain. 

Familial hypercholesterolemia is an inherited disorder that increases cholesterol and LDL levels. Symptoms of high cholesterol and LDL include wounds that are difficult to heal, frequent leg cramps when walking, chest pain, and stroke symptoms such as slurred speech and weakness on one side.

Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the most common type of heart disease. It turns out that around 50% of sufferers inherit gene mutations from their parents and are at 1.5 times the risk of developing CHD. The most typical symptom of this disease is a heart attack, where the sufferer will feel left chest pain with a dull sensation spreading to the arms and back, getting worse during activity, and subsiding when resting. 

How do I detect this disease?

If you or your family feel you have one of the symptoms presented above, you and your family can immediately consult a heart doctor at Hermina Pasteur Hospital. Our heart doctor will quickly detect possible conditions that the reader may be experiencing and direct the reader to carry out several heart examinations, such as heart records (echocardiography), heart ultrasound (echocardiography), and genetic examination if needed to detect gene mutations that cause the suspected disease. Adopt a clean and healthy lifestyle so that you and your family avoid heart disease, and do a routine medicalcheckup at Hermina Pasteur Hospital to detect disease early. Hermina Pasteur: Prioritizing Service Quality and Patient Safety!

Compiled by Dr.Andika Trya 

Curated by Dr.Fathy Fathini, SpJP

Reference:

Hajar R. Genetics in cardiovascular disease. Heart Views. 2020 Jan-Mar; 21(1): 55–56. Diakses pada: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7006335/

Chen MA, Dugdale DC. Familial hypercholesterolemia. Bethesda (MD): National Library of Medicine (US); 2022. Diakses pada: https://medlineplus.gov/ency/article/000392.htm

 Arrhythmias: Schwartz PJ, Ackerman MJ, Antv Elevitch C, Bezziana CR, Borggreve M, Cuneo BF, et al. Inherited cardiac arrhythmias. Nat Rev Dis Primers. 2020 Jul 16;6(1):58. Accessed at: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41572-020-0188-7

 Pruthi S, Anavekar NS, Deshmukh A, and Frantz RP. Cardiomyopathy. Mayo Clinic [Internet]; 2024. Accessed: www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/cardiomyopathy

 Wang Q.: Advances in the genetic basis of coronary artery disease. Curr Atheroscler Rep. 2005 May;7(3):235–41. Diakses pada: ttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC 1783687/