Study finds no direct link between heavy alcohol consumption and dilated cardiomyopathy

A recent study conducted by researchers at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and College of Medicine has found that heavy alcohol consumption does not directly cause dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), a genetic heart muscle disorder. The study was published in Circulation: Genomic and Precision Medicine.
DCM is characterised by a weakening of the heart muscle and an enlarged left ventricle. It is the leading reason for heart transplants and accounts for roughly half of heart failure cases linked to left ventricular dysfunction. Previous data suggest that approximately 1 in 250 Americans are affected by this condition.
The study examined 1,188 individuals diagnosed with DCM and 1,407 of their first-degree relatives—including children, parents, and siblings. Researchers assessed alcohol use through surveys and analysed genetic data for rare variants associated with DCM.
Despite one-third of participants reporting moderate to heavy alcohol consumption, the study found no direct correlation between alcohol use and DCM. Instead, the presence of specific rare genetic variants was significantly associated with the development of the condition. Alcohol, in contrast, did not appear to play a causal role.
Source: Javier Jimenez et al., Alcohol Exposure Among Patients With Dilated Cardiomyopathy and Their First-Degree Relatives: The DCM Precision Medicine Study, Circulation: Genomic and Precision Medicine (2025).