Results of operation for obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in the elderly. Septal myotomy and myectomy in 20 patients 65 years of age or older

Left ventricular outflow tract obstruction and sudden death risk in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

AIMS

Left ventricular outflow tract obstruction (LVOTO) is associated with reduced survival in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). The influence of LVOTO on survival from SD in relation to other recognized clinical risk markers is unknown.

METHODS AND RESULTS

A total of 917 patients with HCM (554 males, 43+/-15 years) were studied; 288 (31.4%) had LVOTO at rest (> or =30 mmHg). During follow-up [median 61 (30;99) months], 54 (5.9%) patients died suddenly (SD), survived ventricular fibrillation, or had an appropriate ICD discharge; 25 (2.7%) died from heart failure or were transplanted; 17 (1.8%) died from other cardiovascular causes. Five-year survival from all-cause death or cardiac transplantation was lower in patients with LVOTO [86.5% (95% CI: 81.7-91.2) vs. 90.1% (95% CI: 87.3-92.8), P=0.006], with a trend towards higher all-cause death and transplantation with increasing LVOTO [(RR per 20 mmHg=1.24 (95% CI: 1.08-1.42), P=0.003)]. In patients with obstruction, there was a significant relation between 5-year survival from all-cause death and functional limitation (NYHA class I: 91.0%; NYHA class II: 83.3%; NYHA class III/IV: 82.6%, P=0.002). LVOTO was associated with reduced survival from SD and ICD discharge (SD/ICD) [91.4% (95% CI: 87.4-95.3) vs. 95.7% (95% CI: 93.8-97.6), P=0.0004]. Magnitude of LVOTO was related to a higher occurrence of SD/ICD [RR per 20 mmHg=1.36 (95% CI: 1.12-1.65), P=0.001]. There was no relation between survival from SD/ICD, LVOTO, and NYHA class. The annual rate of SD/ICD in patients with LVOTO and no risk factors was 0.37% (95%CI: 0.05-1.35). There was a trend towards lower survival from SD/ICD, with increasing numbers of risk factors in patients with and without LVOTO (P=0.002 and P=0.002, respectively). Multivariable analysis demonstrated that LVOTO was an independent predictor of SD/ICD, with a 2.4-fold (P=0.003) increase in the risk of SD/ICD.

CONCLUSION

LVOTO is associated with an increased risk of SD/ICD that is related to the severity of obstruction and the presence of other recognized risk factors for SD. The low sudden death mortality in asymptomatic patients with LVOTO and no other SD risk markers suggests that aggressive interventions to reduce LVOTO are unwarranted in this group. Further studies are required to determine the most appropriate treatment strategies (ICD or gradient reduction) in patients with additional risk factors.

Percutaneous transluminal septal myocardial ablation

Percutaneous transluminal septal myocardial ablation (PTSMA) is a new, investigational, catheter-based treatment for severely symptomatic, medically refractory hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy. A balloon catheter is used to cannulate and isolate the first or second septal perforator coronary artery. Following balloon inflation and intracoronary myocardial contrast echocardiography, ethyl alcohol is injected through the catheter lumen to cause proximal interventricular septum infarction and relief of outflow tract obstruction with improved patient symptoms. Septal scarring and thinning with reductions in the outflow tract gradients ensues over the following 6 to 12 weeks. Most patients have symptomatic improvement, at least moderate reductions in outflow tract gradients, and possibly improvement in exercise capacity. The most common procedural complication is the development of high-grade atrioventricular block necessitating implantation of a permanent pacemaker in 25% of patients. Compared with surgical myectomy, PTSMA has the advantage of being minimally invasive, easily repeated, and with relatively low major morbidity/mortality risk for patients with comorbid conditions. The findings from recently initiated international registries will be helpful in assessing the overall success and complication rates with PTSMA.

Hypertrophic and restrictive cardiomyopathies in the elderly

Congestive heart failure (CHF) increases with age, but most CHF in the elderly is due to diastolic dysfunction with preserved systolic function. The etiology, pathophysiology, diagnosis, natural history, and treatment of hypertrophic and restrictive cardiomyopathies in the elderly are discussed as a paradigm for CHF with normal systolic function. Hypertrophic obstructive and hypertensive hypertrophic cardiomyopathies are compared and contrasted. As an example of a restrictive cardiomyopathy, the various types of amyloidosis and their clinical import in older patients are covered.

Long-term results of left ventricular myotomy and myectomy for obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

A retrospective analysis of patients with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy treated by left ventricular myotomy and myectomy from 1972 to 1994 is reported. There were 158 patients (81 male and 77 female) with a mean age of 50.2(+/-17.2) years (range 12 to 80 years). One hundred nine patients (69%) were 60 years of age or younger, and 49 patients (31%) were older than 60 years. The overall mean follow-up period was 6.1(+/-4.8) years (range 0.1 to 19.3 years) and was 94% complete with a cumulative total of 956 patient-years. Preoperative exertional dyspnea was present in 84%, chest pain in 70%, presyncope in 54%, syncope in 31%, and cardiac arrest in 5% of patients. Preoperative cardiac catheterization was done in 150 patients, with mitral regurgitation detected in 104 patients (67%). The average maximal provocable left ventricular outflow tract gradient was 118 (+/-46) mm Hg (range 25 to 250 mm Hg). The average preoperative echocardiographic gradient at rest was 64 mm Hg, 20 mm Hg in the early postoperative period and 10 mm Hg in the late postoperative period. The mean septal thickness was 2.2 (+/-0.6) cm, 1.9 (+/-0.7) cm in the early postoperative period (p < 0.05 vs preoperative) and 1.7 (+/- 0.5) cm in the late postoperative period (p < 0.05 vs preoperative). The overall 30-day operative mortality rate was 3.2% (5/158), and 0% for 109 patients 60 years of age or younger. Causes of death included myocardial infarction and left ventricular free wall rupture, myocardial failure from septal perforation, sepsis, cerebrovascular accident caused by thromboembolism, and delayed cardiac tamponade in one patient each. Concomitant coronary artery bypass grafting was performed in 22 patients (19.3% of patients > or = to 40 years of age) and mitral valve replacement in 5 patients (3.2%). One hundred nine patients (69%) are alive, 10 patients (6.3%) were lost to follow-up, and 39 patients died (24.7%), including operative deaths). Actuarial survivals at 1, 5, 10, and 15 years were 92.4% +/- 2.2%, 85.4% +/- 3.1%, 71.5 +/- 4.6%, and 46% +/- 9%, respectively. The overall linearized death rate for discharged patients was 1.9%/pt-yr, and for cardiac related deaths it was 1.7%/pt-yr. Thirty-nine (36%) of the 109 survivors received beta-adrenergic blockers, and 30 (28%) received calcium channel blockers. Ninety-four patients had improvement in New York Heart Association functional class, 10 had improvement in symptoms but not in functional class, and 5 had no improvement in functional class or symptoms. Neither preoperative hemodynamic values nor routine echocardiographic measurements significantly correlated with quality of postoperative results. Left ventricular myotomy and myectomy is a safe and reproducibly effective operative treatment for medically refractory hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy, especially for patients 60 years of age or younger. Improvement in functional class and symptoms can be expected in nearly all patients 60 years of age or younger. Improvement in functional class and symptoms can be expected in nearly all patients. The results of myotomy and myectomy serve as a standard for comparison with other interventions for medically refractory cardiomyopathy.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy: prognosis with medical or surgical therapy

Over the past 30 years, knowledge of the natural history and effects of therapy in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy has expanded greatly, but progress has been hampered by its variable patterns of expression. Many but not all patients show symptomatic improvement with medical treatment. Chronic beta blockage does not appear to affect long-term survival, whereas results with calcium channel blockade by verapamil have been encouraging; however, they await confirmation, and verapamil may be hazardous in some patients with severe left ventricular (LV) outflow tract obstruction and elevated LV end-diastolic pressure. Reported beneficial effects of amiodarone on survival also require further study. Surgical therapy has become the treatment of choice for medically refractory patients with proven outflow tract obstruction. In several centers, the operative risk is low, and long-term follow-up demonstrates prolonged symptomatic relief. It is hoped that work currently underway will provide more definitive information on the long-term effects of the role of calcium channel blockers, antiarrhythmic medications, and the long-term effects of surgical therapy on survival of patients with this disorder.

Results of operation for coexistent obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and coronary artery disease

This study describes the operative management and outcome of 28 patients with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and hemodynamically significant coronary artery disease. Each patient underwent coronary artery bypass grafting and concomitant left ventricular myotomy-myectomy or mitral valve replacement. The mean age at operation was 59 years (range 42 to 74). Five patients (18%) died as a result of operation, four in the immediate postoperative period and one at 2 months postoperatively. Three patients died after the immediate postoperative period of causes unrelated to the operation. The mean follow-up period for the 20 currently surviving patients was 4.8 years (range 4 months to 10.8 years). Nineteen of these patients have experienced substantial functional improvement; all are currently asymptomatic or only mildly symptomatic. Twenty-one patients underwent cardiac catheterization before and after operation; each experienced relief of left ventricular outflow tract obstruction after operation. Twelve patients had a preoperative outflow gradient greater than or equal to 50 mm Hg (average 86 +/- 7) under basal conditions, which decreased to 3 +/- 1.8 mm Hg postoperatively (p less than 0.001). Nine patients had a severe preoperative gradient only with a provocative maneuver (average 93 +/- 6 mm Hg), which decreased to 24 +/- 8 mm Hg postoperatively (p less than 0.001). Five of the 24 patients undergoing left ventricular myotomy-myectomy incurred an iatrogenic ventricular septal defect. This operative complication occurred primarily in patients with a relatively thin ventricular septum (less than 20 mm) and contributed importantly to postoperative death in two of the patients.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The significance of increased left ventricular outflow tract velocities in the elderly measured by continuous wave Doppler

Forty-four elderly patients (mean age 80 +/- 7 years) with elevated left ventricular outflow tract velocities and corresponding outflow tract gradients documented by continuous wave Doppler are reported (mean peak gradient 50 +/- 28). They had severe left ventricular hypertrophy, small left ventricular end-diastolic dimensions, and supernormal ejection fractions. Thirty-nine percent had a history of hypertension. They were predominantly female, had uniform concentric left ventricular hypertrophy, and had a high incidence of congestive heart failure. Diastolic function was found to be reduced in the elderly group compared to young patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and to age- and sex-matched normal controls. It is concluded that most elderly patients with increased left ventricular outflow tract velocities are etiologically distinct from young patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

Hypertensive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy or hypertrophic cardiomyopathy with hypertension? A study of 78 patients

Hypertensive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy may be a distinctive cardiac condition resulting from hypertension. Alternatively, this disease may represent the coincidence of a common disease, hypertension, with a relatively rare cardiomyopathy. A consecutive series of patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and hypertension were studied and compared with age- and gender-matched patients with cardiomyopathy alone. Thirty-nine patients were identified as having hypertension; they ranged in age from 31 to 84 years (average 60 +/- 13); 82% were greater than 50 years old; 18 (46%) were women. When these patients were compared with the age-matched group with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy alone, there were no clinical or electrocardiographic differences between the two groups. By echocardiography, the hypertensive and nonhypertensive groups had a similar incidence of systolic anterior motion (77 versus 64%, respectively), mitral annular calcification (31 versus 31%), septal thickness greater than 20 mm (56 versus 46%) and outflow tract gradient greater than 20 mm (59 versus 67%). A posterior wall thickness greater than 13 mm was more frequent in the hypertensive group (54%) compared with the nonhypertensive group (31%) (p = 0.02). The findings show that hypertrophic cardiomyopathy with associated hypertension is a disease of the elderly. But, with the exception of thicker walls, the clinical and echocardiographic features of the patients with hypertension were indistinguishable from those of the age-matched and, hence, elderly group of patients with cardiomyopathy without hypertension. These findings suggest that hypertension may make hypertrophy worse, but that it is not the primary cause of the cardiomyopathy. Thus, the condition might be better termed "hypertrophic cardiomyopathy with hypertension."

Clinical and hemodynamic results after mitral valve replacement in patients with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy

Mitral valve replacement has been performed in patients with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy if: (1) the interventricular septum is smaller than 18 mm in the region of usual resection; (2) atypical septal morphology is encountered; (3) a previous left ventricular myomectomy has been performed but residual major obstruction and symptoms persist; or (4) intrinsic mitral valve disease exists. Since 1983, mitral valve replacement has been performed in 58 patients with obstructive HCM only. Thirty-three female patients (mean age, 47.9 years) and 25 men (mean age, 45.7 years) met criteria 1 through 3 for mitral valve replacement. Patients with intrinsic mitral valve disease (criterion 4) were omitted from this study. All patients were in New York Heart Association functional class III or IV and had failed optimal medical therapy. Low-profile mechanical prostheses and bioprostheses were implanted, and the early mortality (less than 30 days or in the hospital) was 8.6% (5/58). Six patients (11.3%) died late, 3 suddenly of probably arrhythmia, 2 of respiratory failure, and 1 of an anticoagulant-related complication. After mitral valve replacement, 40 (83%) of 48 patients surviving operation and returning for evaluation were in functional class I or II, whereas 8 patients were in functional class III. Hemodynamic data obtained 6 months postoperatively showed that pulmonary artery wedge pressure was normal (13.7 +/- 4 mm Hg [+/- standard deviation]), left ventricular end-diastolic pressure had decreased (10.9 +/- 3.4 mm Hg), cardiac index was maintained (2.6 +/- 0.6 L/min/m2), and resting and provoked gradients were unremarkable. Mean follow-up was 24.2 months, actuarial survival was 86% at 3 years, and survival free from thromboembolism, anticoagulant-related complication, reoperation, and congestive heart failure for the same interval was 68%. Complications such as ventricular septal defect and complete heart block are avoided in patients undergoing mitral valve replacement, but device-related and cardiac-related complications can add to the morbidity and mortality in these patients in the long term.

Elderly patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy: a subset with distinctive left ventricular morphology and progressive clinical course late in life

This report describes a subgroup of 52 elderly patients with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in whom certain clinical and morphologic features differed importantly from those of many other patients with this disease. Ages ranged from 60 to 84 years (mean 69) and 45 [87%] were women. Echocardiographic examination showed a relatively small heart, having only modest ventricular septal hypertrophy associated with marked distortion of left ventricular outflow tract morphology. By virtue of selection, left ventricular outflow tract size at end-diastole was substantially reduced, and anterior displacement of the mitral valve within the left ventricular cavity was particularly marked. Sizable deposits of calcium in the region of the mitral anulus, posterior to the mitral valve, appeared to contribute to the outflow tract narrowing. Systolic anterior motion of the mitral valve was severe (with apposition of the mitral valve and ventricular septum) in 32 patients and more moderate in 20. The mechanism by which systolic contact between the mitral valve and septum occurred in most patients appeared to differ from that observed more typically in many other patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy; in most elderly study patients, anterior excursion of the mitral valve leaflets was relatively restricted, and systolic apposition between the mitral valve and septum resulted from a combination of anterior motion of the mitral valve and posterior excursion of the septum. The vast majority (50 of 52) of the patients remained asymptomatic (or only mildly symptomatic) for most of their lives and often did not develop severe and intractable symptoms until the 6th or 7th decade (ages 56 to 81 years; mean 66). Of the 49 patients with at least 1 year follow-up study, only 12 had improvement with pharmacologic therapy; however, 14 of the 18 patients who underwent ventricular septal myotomy-myectomy or mitral valve replacement obtained symptomatic benefit from operation. In conclusion, obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in many elderly (and predominantly female) patients may assume a distinctive morphologic appearance and a progressive clinical course. This subgroup of patients appears to constitute an important segment of the disease spectrum of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy of cardiac disease in the elderly that previously has not been precisely defined nor fully appreciated.

Operation for hypertrophic subaortic stenosis in the aged

To determine if operative palliation of idiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis (IHSS) is worthwhile in the elderly, hemodynamic, cardiac conduction, symptomatological, functional, and survival data were examined in 52 patients (39 women) 65 years old and older (mean age, 69 years; range, 65 to 81 years) who had a left ventricular myotomy and myectomy (LVMM) (Morrow procedure) alone or with concomitant operations. Seventy-four percent of all operative survivors underwent catheterization an average of 6 months postoperatively. The mean follow-up was 54 months (range, 5 to 120 months). The population was divided for analyses into those with coronary artery disease (CAD) (N = 11,21%) and those without (N = 41). The peak resting left ventricular outflow tract gradient was reduced from 65 +/- 16 mm Hg to 3 +/- 1 mm Hg (p less than 0.01) in the group with CAD and from 95 +/- 13 mm Hg to 17 +/- 9 mm Hg (p less than 0.001) in the group without CAD. Significant reductions in peak gradients in response to provocation also occurred in both groups. New conduction abnormalities occurred in 72% of survivors, 85% of whom showed improvement in regard to symptoms. The overall average New York Heart Association Functional Class was 3.2 +/- 0.1 preoperatively and at latest follow-up, 1.9 +/- 0.1 (p less than 0.001). The hospital mortality for LVMM alone in the absence of CAD was 8% with a 5-year actuarial survival of 75 +/- 8%. LVMM in the presence of CAD resulted in an operative mortality of 27% (N = 3); all deaths were related to an acquired ventricular septal defect.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Cardiomyopathies in the elderly

Cardiomyopathies in the elderly have certain characteristic features. The dilated form appears to be less common than in younger patients. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is more often associated with severe and concentric hypertrophy. The prognosis of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy seems to be better in the elderly, because they appear to have a lower incidence of sudden death. Restrictive cardiomyopathies are not common in the elderly, and senile amyloid heart disease rarely, if ever, results in congestive heart failure. A syndrome of clinical heart failure with reduced diastolic compliance and preserved systolic function is more common in elderly patients.

Septal myomectomy and mitral valve replacement for idiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis: short- and long-term follow-up

The long-term results of septal myotomy-myomectomy or mitral valve replacement, or both, were assessed in 36 patients with idiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis who were followed up for 5 to 67 months (mean 48) postoperatively. The mean left ventricular outflow tract gradient at rest decreased postoperatively in all three patient groups. It decreased from 60 mm Hg (range 17 to 160) preoperatively to 3 mm Hg (range 0 to 20) postoperatively (p less than 0.001) in the 13 patients who underwent mitral valve replacement alone, from 69 mm Hg (range 18 to 140) to 35 mm Hg (range 20 to 50) (p less than 0.05) in the 12 patients who underwent myotomy-myomectomy alone and from 89 mm Hg (range 60 to 165) to 3.8 mm Hg (range 0 to 27) (p less than 0.001) in the 11 patients who underwent myomectomy plus mitral valve replacement. The reduction in gradient was more impressive after mitral valve replacement with or without septal myotomy-myomectomy than after septal myotomy-myomectomy alone. There was a marked reduction in symptoms after all three surgical procedures that was long-lasting and independent of the type of operation performed. There was no operative mortality. Postoperative annual mortality rate was 1.6%. Patients with severe congestive heart failure, significantly elevated left ventricular end-diastolic pressure and atrial fibrillation have a less favorable long-term postoperative prognosis. Septal myotomy-myomectomy is recommended as the procedure of choice for the majority of patients with idiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis who require surgery, because it can alleviate symptoms without subjecting patients to the complications of a valve prosthesis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Surgical treatment of hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy in the elderly

Three elderly patients with hypertropic obstructive cardiomyopathy which was successfully treated by surgery are described. The role of surgery in the management of older patients with this condition is discussed.