Cardiomyopathy in a 30 year old woman

My girlfriend was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy at the age of 18.  Her father passed from it at 33 years old, her uncle at 45, and her aunt is currently living with the disease at the age of 55, and her brother has it as well and went into congestive heart failure at 17 years old but miraculously lived and is now living with a high ejection fraction.

she does not drink, smoke, or do drugs and she exercises for a living.  She has a very healthy lifestyle and is 30 years old.  Her ejection fraction was around 40%-45% for years and last year when she went to get her echo it dropped down to 20%-25%.  Her cardiologist has no answers as to why this happened but basically said it's the progression of the disease....This information sent her into a tailspin of depression and I find myself sitting idle by her side feeling helpless.  So within this past year she went to talk with an eastern medicine "doctor" that told her to take natural pills that would cure her disease...so she's been taking Vasculin and Cardio plus in addition to her western meds of Coreg and Prinivil.  Yesterday she went to get her annual echo and her ejection fraction didn't get any worse, but unfortunately it didn't get any better either.  So we are feeling a bit helpless once again.  I know modern medicine is an amazing thing and maybe one day there will be some kind of miracle procedure that will give her hope again, but i can't wait that long.   SO my question to all of you folks is do you know of any other treatments that could help the EF go up?  any advice at all??  I saw somewhere on this site about stem cell research that can help  cardiomyopathy patients...any knowledge on that??   i am at a loss....I need help.

thanks in advance...

alison

[darbyone]

cardiomyopathy is usually permanent.  cardiac meds usually help as well as a debibulator/pacemaker combination.   you can lead quite a normal life with meds.  in some cases cardiac meds will increase your ef rate.  my son has cardiomyopathy with an ef rate of 15-19% and is actually doing very well at this time.  he was diagnosed 12 months ago.  had defib. inserted in june of this year.  he paces himself and rests when needs to.  he's not able to do physcial activity but is able to do many other things.  he cooks/cleans/drives etc.  you have to adjust your life style,  he is 37 years old.  
he's on permanent disability now but i'm glad he's alive and so is he.  sometimes it's tough on him but on the whole he has accepted his permanent condition.
the only other treatment that i am aware of is a heart transplant.
hope this helps.  

[Encephalomalcia]

Having Cardiomyopathy for 12 years is a long time.  Her EF is low and could get lower suddenly as sometimes it drops fast.  If I were her, I would get on a heart transplant list asap.  She is so young.  She is currently on the best medicine.