Heart atrophy. Illustration of a condition called brown atrophy of the heart where the organ is reduced in size, the chambers of the ventricles are narrowed and the cardiac muscle is discoloured brown and of firm consistency. The heart walls appear thickened due mostly to the diminished cavities. The brown colour of the heart is due to excessive deposits of lipofuscin pigments within the cardiac muscle cells. Atrophy of the heart is a common feature of ageing. From Bollinger, O. 1901 Atlas und Gundriss der Pathologischen Anatomie, vol 1. Lehmann, Munich.