Patient population
Between December 2000 and December 2017, 170 consecutive DCM patients
received an implantation of an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator
(ICD) or cardiac resynchronization therapy with defibrillator (CRT-D)
for primary or secondary prevention of VTAs in Hokkaido University
Hospital. Patients were diagnosed as DCM when they satisfied the
following criteria: (1) absence of significant coronary stenosis, (2)
abnormal LV function (reduced LVEF <50% and dilation), and
(3) exclusion of other cardiac and systemic disorders. After exclusion
of patients with short follow-up/lost to follow-up, no follow-up
echocardiographic data, and no follow-up record of ICD/CRT-D cases, 136
DCM patients were recruited in this study. According to the presence or
absence of RR-NSVT, 68 patients without RR-NSVT were classified as the
RR-NSVT (-) group and 68 patients with RR-NSVT as the RR-NSVT (+) group.