ARVD/C stands for Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Dysplasia/Cardiomyopathy. Arrhythmogenic means causing an arrhythmia. The right ventricle is the chamber of the heart that is affected and dysplasia means there is an abnormality of the structure. ARVD/C is a specific type of cardiomyopathy (a disorder of the cardiac muscle) and as a result, the condition is also referred to as ARVC for short.

Simply put, ARVD/C is a genetic, progressive heart condition in which the muscle of the right ventricle is replaced by fat and fibrosis, which causes abnormal heart rhythms. ARVD/C is estimated to affect one in 5,000 people. The disease can affect both men and women. Although it is a relatively uncommon cause of sudden cardiac death, it accounts for up to one fifth of sudden cardiac death in people under 35 years of age.

Symptoms

Arrhythmias – An abnormality in the timing or pattern of a heartbeat that presents as a racing heartbeat, skipping heartbeat, palpitations, or fluttering sensation
Premature Ventricular Contractions (PVC) – extra or irregular heartbeats that occur when the electrical signal starts in the lower chamber of the heart (the ventricle)
Ventricular Tachycardia (VT) – a series of rapid heartbeats, originating in the ventricle. This may last only a few beats or this may continue and lead to life-threatening arrhythmias. VT can cause weakness, nausea, vomiting, and lightheadedness, as well as feelings a racing or skipping heart.
Syncope – Also referred to as fainting or a sudden loss of consciousness
Heart failure – Rarely a patient’s first symptoms are those associated with right heart failure including weakness, foot and ankle swelling (peripheral edema), fluid build-up in the abdomen (ascites), as well as arrhythmic symptoms.
Sudden cardiac arrest – In some patients, the first sign of ARVD/C is sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) where the heart stops beating and pumping blood to the rest of the body’s organs. This can result in death if not treated within minutes.

http://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/heart_vascular_institute/clinical_services/centers_excellence/arvd/

The reason for this post is because it is a silent killer. My little sister died at the age of 38 from it. Shortly after that, both her daughters were tested. It was discovered that both daughters had ARVD. One was 13 the other 15 when they got the confirmation of having ARVD. The "15 year old" now much older has had to carry a defibrillator with her at all times.

Last month my 11 year old nephew had a sudden loss of consciousness and we are now waiting for all of the tests to find out if he has the same thing. 😥

Since this is normally not heard about until it was too late, I thought maybe others should know.