What is the primary difference between primary and secondary cardiomyopathy?

The primary difference between primary and secondary cardiomyopathy lies in their underlying causes and the focus of their effects. Primary cardiomyopathy predominantly involves the heart itself, where the disease originates within the cardiac muscle with no identifiable cause related to other systemic conditions. This type is often characterized by intrinsic abnormalities of heart muscle, such as dilated cardiomyopathy or hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, where the dysfunction is inherent to the myocardial tissue.

On the other hand, secondary cardiomyopathy results from systemic conditions that affect the heart, such as hypertension, metabolic diseases, or inflammatory conditions. In this case, the heart issues arise as a consequence of these external factors rather than from a direct pathological change in the heart muscle itself. Therefore, understanding that primary cardiomyopathy is directly related to intrinsic heart muscle dysfunction while secondary cardiomyopathy is due to external factors affecting the heart helps clarify this distinction.