ABSTRACT
Cardiac catheterization provides data through direct determination of flow and intracardiac pressures, whose measurement with Doppler echocardiography or other noninvasive evaluations remains limited. The principal indication for invasive hemodynamic catheterization is to resolve discrepant clinical and non-invasive findings when the data will incrementally impact the management of the patient. In patients with multiple or complex lesions, cardiac catheterization may be the only reliable and accurate method for hemodynamic assessment. Right and left heart catheterization is recommended for assessment of pericardial disease, restrictive cardiomyopathy, and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Diastolic abnormalities are the major pathophysiological mechanisms contributing to signs and symptoms for patients with HCM. Restrictive cardiomyopathy is characterized by a non-dilated, rigid ventricle that results in severe diastolic dysfunction and restrictive filling. Echocardiography is used to determine the most appropriate portal of entry and needle direction into the pericardial effusion, typically the window closest to the effusion.
