Fat in the right ventricle of the normal heart
Abstract
Aims : Fibrofatty replacement of the right ventricle wall, often with associated inflammation, is the hallmark of arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC), a rare but established cause of sudden cardiac death in young adults. Fatty infiltration of the right ventricle alone without fibrosis may also occur but its relation to sudden death is not well established. In this study we assessed the amount of epicardial and intramyocardial fat in the right ventricle of ‘normal’ hearts from subjects who had died of non‐cardiac causes. Methods and results : Hearts (n = 148) were examined from 81 males and 67 females, with an age range of 6 months to 68 years, who had died of non‐cardiac causes. The extent and distribution of right ventricular epicardial and intramyocardial fat was assessed macro‐ and microscopically, respectively. The majority of hearts (85%) contained at least some intramyocardial fat with significantly more fat replacement noted in the right ventricles of older subjects and in females than in males. There was no significant fibrosis or inflammation in any of the 148 cases. Conclusion : Variable amounts of intramyocardial fat may be seen in the right ventricle of subjects dying of non‐cardiac related causes. Care should be taken not to confuse this relatively common simple fatty infiltration with ARVC.
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Epicardial fat anterior to the right ventricle is extremely common, and epicardial fat commonly interpolates into the RV free wall.
“However, widespread use of cardiac MRI and computed tomography, particularly when evaluating for possible arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia, have revealed that epicardial fat anterior to the right ventricle is extremely common (178, 342, 344). Moreover, epicardial fat commonly interpolates into the RV free wall.”
From Cardiac remodeling in obesity (2008) · cites this paper as [344]
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Epicardial adipose tissue: Anatomic, biomolecular and clinical relationships with the heart
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- Authors
- Tansey, D. K., Aly, Z., & Sheppard, M. N.
- Affiliations
- Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Sheppard, M N
- ORCID
- Sheppard, M N
- Venue
- Histopathology
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2005-01
- Volume
- 46
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 98-104
- ISSN
- 0309-0167 (ISSN-L)
- 1365-2559
- OpenAlex
- W2058492537
- Cited by
- 192
- References
- 16
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 7 · 2023: 13 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 11 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 8 · 2014: 9 · 2013: 11 · 2012: 12
- FWCI
- 7.06
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Histopathology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Cardiovascular Effects of Exercise
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Cardiomyopathy and Myosin Studies
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Cardiac electrophysiology and arrhythmias
- Keywords
- right ventricle, epicardial adipose tissue, fatty infiltration, arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy, sudden cardiac death, myocardial fibrosis, inflammation, normal heart, sex differences, age differences
- MeSH terms
- Adipose Tissue, Adolescent, Adult, Aged, Child, Child, Preschool, Female, Heart Ventricles, Humans, Infant, Male
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