Prognostic usefulness of echocardiographic dobutamine in younger (14 to 25 years) and older (40 to 55 years) patients with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy

We studied 16 younger patients (<25 years old) and 16 older patients (>40 years old) to investigate the prognostic value of echocardiographic dobutamine-induced changes. The results of this study showed that although the percent achieved of predicted oxygen consumption was lower in the younger group, no prognostic information was given regarding the outcome of this particular group. In contrast, echocardiographic dobutamine-induced changes can distinguish high-risk younger patients.