Incremental prognostic value of myocardial fibrosis in patients with non-ischemic cardiomyopathy without congestive heart failure

We conducted a prospective longitudinal study to investigate the yet unknown clinical significance of myocardial fibrosis in patients with non-ischemic cardiomyopathy without history of congestive heart failure (CHF). At 3 tertiary referral centers, 228 patients with non-ischemic cardiomyopathy without history of CHF were studied with cardiovascular magnetic resonance for late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) detection and quantification and prospectively followed up for a median of 23 months. The end point was a composite of cardiac death, onset of CHF, and aborted sudden cardiac death. LGE was detected in 61 (27%) patients. Thirty-one of 61 (51%) patients with LGE reached combined end point when compared with 18 of 167 (11%) patients without LGE (hazard ratio, 5.10 [2.78-9.36]; P