Dilated cardiomyopathy, or heart failure reduced ejection fraction, is one of the more common types of cardiomyopathy. It can develop after a heart attack or other conditions that damage the heart, such as a viral illness. In this condition, your heart’s ability to pump blood is reduced, resulting in the heart ejecting less blood with each beat. Over time, your heart may dilate (stretch), and you may develop symptoms of heart failure, including shortness of breath, fatigue, weight gain and leg swelling.

Although this form of cardiomyopathy can affect people of all ages, it occurs most often in middle-aged or older people, and is more likely to affect men. Some people may have a family history of the condition.

Restrictive cardiomyopathy, or heart failure preserved ejection fraction, causes the heart muscle to become stiff, meaning the heart can’t stretch enough for the heart chambers to fill properly. Blood then backs up in the circulatory system, which can lead to congestive heart failure.

Restrictive cardiomyopathy can happen at any age, but it most often affects older people. The condition may be caused by diseases that affect the heart, such as hypertension, diabetes and obesity, or it may occur with no known cause (idiopathic cardiomyopathy). Approximately 50% of patients with heart failure have restrictive cardiomyopathy.

This type of cardiomyopathy happens when the heart muscle grows too thick, causing the heart to get bigger and its chambers to get smaller. This thickening muscle stiffens the heart and affects its performance.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy can begin at any age, but the condition tends to be more serious the earlier in life it starts. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy runs in families and is the most common genetic heart disease.