Medications, including beta blockers, calcium channel blockers, anti-arrhythmic drugs, and blood thinners can ease symptoms and prevent complications. These medications can help:
- Relax the heart muscle, letting it fill and pump better
- Steady or slow your heart rate or rhythm
- Prevent blood clots from forming
- Reduce chest pain
Remember that your medications work only if you take them as prescribed. Some medicines will be started at a low dose (amount), and higher doses may be needed over time.
Work together with your care team to decide on the best treatment path for you. In most cases, medications, and lifestyle changes are all the treatment you need to support your overall health.
Surgery and Procedures
Surgeries and procedures can be used to remove or destroy thickened areas of the heart or to maintain normal heart rhythm.
These are generally recommended if blood flow out of the heart is slowed (obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy) or if you are having symptoms despite being on medications.
These therapies are best done at medical centers with experienced teams with special training in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).
- Septal myectomy: Open-heart surgery to remove part of the thickened wall of the heart (septum) and improve blood flow. Valve repair or replacement may also be recommended.
- Alcohol septal ablation (or nonsurgical septal reduction therapy): A thin catheter is carefully threaded into the artery and alcohol is injected to kill muscle cells in the thickened part of the heart.
- Implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD): A small device is placed in the chest or abdomen that help detect and control irregular heartbeats. The device uses electrical shocks to restore a normal rhythm. ICDs can prevent sudden cardiac death.
- Heart transplant may be done in rare cases for severe heart failure.