Septal Myectomy

Septal myectomy is a cardiac surgery treatment for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, in which a portion of the thickened septum obstructing blood flow from the left ventricle into the aorta is surgically removed through open-heart surgery. It is typically performed only after medication, usually beta or calcium channel blockers, or non-surgical alcohol septal ablation have failed to control the condition; the choice between septal myectomy and alcohol ablation is a complex medical decision. The procedure was established by the surgeon Andrew G. Morrow in the 1960s.