Speckle Tracking Echocardiography Analysis of Left Ventricular Myocardium After Percutaneous Intramyocardial Septal Radiofrequency Ablation for Hypertrophic Obstructive Cardiomyopathy

Under transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) guidance, the puncture site is positioned at the apex. A guiding line is applied along the septal long axis and the radiofrequency ablation electrode needle(17G, Cool-tip™ RF Ablation System and Switching Controller;Medtronic, Minneapolis, MN, USA) pierced towards the hypertrophic anterior interventricular septum (AIVS) 8-10 mm from the subaortic valve. Each ablation lasts for up to 12 min and the ablation power is gradually increased from 30-40W. Then, the ablation needle is withdrawn 10 mm to prepare for the next application. Overall, 3-4 applications are performed in each patient. The ablation creates an area of thermal coagulative myocardial necrosis that appears as a hyperechogenic reflection detected by TTE. If deemed necessary, we repeat the procedure at the posterior interventricular septum (PIVS).