Cardiomegaly is a condition wherein the heart enlarges in a cardiothoracic ratio of more than 0.50. It can be attributed to a lot of causes, but mostly it is because of low heart output, otherwise referred to as a cardiac failure. A cardiothoracic ratio is the way to measure the size of a person’s heart. In this case, cardiomegaly occurs if the heart is more than 50 percent bigger than the inner diameter of one’s rib cage.

Cardiomegaly is assumed to be the direct effect of the thickening of the heart muscles and that happens when the heart is given an increased workload. This increase workload on the other hand, may be due to other health conditions present in the body. Viral illnesses and previous heart attacks can cause the heart to overwork. Drug abuse, inflammation of the heart, and uncontrolled hypertension are the known issues that may give rise to cardiomegaly.

Exercise is also a factor. It is believed that most athletes have enlarged hearts, but in this case, theirs is not considered to be a medical condition at all. So in essence, cardiomegaly is not always bad, at least not for sports people. But to a regular person, having an enlarged heart is not normal at all.