Endomyocardial Fibrosis

Synonyms

• Davies' Disease
• EMF
• Fibroelastic Endocarditis
• Loeffler Endomyocardial Fibrosis with Eosinophilia
• Loeffler Fibroplastic Parietal Endocarditis
• Loeffler's Disease

Disorder Subdivisions

• Left Ventricular Fibrosis
• Right Ventricular Fibrosis
• Biventricular Fibrosis

General Discussion

Endomyocardial fibrosis (EMF) is a progressive disease of unknown origin (idiopathic) that may seriously affect the heart. Its most obvious feature is a gross change in the makeup of the lining of the heart cavities (the endocardium) of one or both of the lower chambers of the heart (the ventricles) leading to the replacement of normal cells with fibrous tissue (fibrosis). This process is progressive and leads to the narrowing (constriction) of the right or left ventricular cavities. It may involve the valves between the chambers of the heart as well as the tendon-like cords that fix the valves to the ventricles (chordae tendineae).
Loeffler's disease is a disease of the heart much like endomyocardial fibrosis. Some clinicians regard it as an early stage of EMF, although this idea remains controversial. Loeffler’s disease is a rare disorder of unknown origin, characterized by abnormal increases in the number of particular white blood cells (eosinophilia), and like EMF, gross fibrosis of the endocardium, and inflammation of small blood vessels (arteritis).
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Resources

American Heart Association
National Center
7272 Greenville Avenue
Dallas, TX 75231-4596
Tel: (214)373-6300
Fax: (214)373-0268
Tel: (800)242-8721
Email: inquire@heart.org
Internet: http://www.americanheart.org

Congenital Heart Anomalies, Support, Education, & Resources
2112 North Wilkins Road
Swanton, OH 43558
Tel: (419)825-5575
Fax: (419)825-2880
Email: chaser@compuserve.com
Internet: http://www.csun.edu/~hcmth011/chaser/chaser-news.html

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
1600 Clifton Road NE
Atlanta, GA 30333
Tel: (404)639-3534
Tel: (800)311-3435
Email: http://www.cdc.gov/netinfo.htm
Internet: http://www.cdc.gov/

NIH/Developmental Endocrinology Branch
Bldg 10, Room 10N262
10 Center Drive
Bethesda, MD 20892
Tel: (301)496-4686
Fax: (301)402-0574

For a Complete Report

This is an abstract of a report from the National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc. ® (NORD). A copy of the complete report can be obtained for a small fee by visiting the NORD website. The complete report contains additional information including symptoms, causes, affected population, related disorders, standard and investigational treatments (if available), and references from medical literature. For a full-text version of this topic, see http://www.rarediseases.org/search/rdblist.html

The information provided in this report is not intended for diagnostic purposes. It is provided for informational purposes only. NORD recommends that affected individuals seek the advice or counsel of their own personal physicians.

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This disease entry is based upon medical information available through the date at the end of the topic. Since NORD's resources are limited, it is not possible to keep every entry in the Rare Disease Database completely current and accurate. Please check with the agencies listed in the Resources section for the most current information about this disorder.

For additional information and assistance about rare disorders, please contact the National Organization for Rare Disorders at P.O. Box 1968, Danbury, CT 06813-1968; phone (203) 744-0100; web site www.rarediseases.org or email orphan@rarediseases.org

Last Updated: 2/4/2003
Copyright 1986, 1989, 2003 National Organization for Rare Disorders, Inc.