heart and blood vessel disorders
Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
Treatment of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
Medications such as a beta-blocker and/or a calcium channel blocker Sometimes a procedure to improve blood flow Sometimes an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator If possible, doctors treat the condition causing hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Treatment of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is aimed primarily at reducing the heart’s resistance to filling with blood between heartbeats. Beta-blockers and the calcium channel blockerverapamil—taken separately or together—are the main treatment. Both reduce the force of heart muscle contraction. As a result, the heart can fill better and, if the thickened muscle was blocking blood flow, blood can flow out of the heart more easily. Also, beta-blockers andverapamilslow the heart rate, so that the heart has more time to fill. Sometimes,disopyramide, a medication that decreases the strength of heart contractions, is also used. Amiodaroneis sometimes used to treat abnormal heart rhythms. Mavacamtendecreases the contraction of the heart and seems to relieve symptoms and increase exercise tolerance. Surgery to remove some of the thickened heart muscle (myectomy) can improve the flow of blood from the heart, but surgery is done only when symptoms are incapacitating despite medication. Myectomy can relieve symptoms, but it does not reduce the risk of death. When myectomy is done in hospitals that have extensive experience doing the procedure, long-term results are excellent. ) is used in certain people to improve blood flow from the heart because it can be done during Cardiac Catheterization and Coronary Angiography . Although cardiac catheterization is an invasive procedure in which a catheter is threaded into the heart, it has fewer risks in people who are at high risk of complications if they have heart surgery. People who have severe heart muscle thickening, especially thickening of the wall that separates the heart chambers (cardiac septum), have a high risk of developing deadly abnormal heart rhythms which cause sudden death. Doctors may recommend an Cardioversion-Defibrillation for these people. 