Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy carriers: Evidence of cardiomyopathy by exercise and cardiac MRI testing.

Background: Varied detection methods have resulted in conflicting reports on the prevalence of cardiac disease in Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy carriers (MDC).

Methods: We performed a prospective cohort study of 77 genetically-confirmed MDC mothers, 22 non-carrier mothers, and 25 controls. All participants underwent Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing (CPET) and Cardiac Magnetic Resonance imaging (CMR).