Treatment

Blood pressure medication may help prevent further enlargement of the left ventricle and even shrink your hypertrophic muscles. Your doctor might recommend medications including:

Medications

Blood pressure medication may help prevent further enlargement of the left ventricle and even shrink your hypertrophic muscles. Your doctor might recommend medications including:

• Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors. These medications widen blood vessels to lower blood pressure, improve blood flow and decrease the heart's workload. Examples include captopril, enalapril (Vasotec) and lisinopril (Prinivil, Zestril, Zestoretic). Side effects might include an irritating dry cough in a small percentage of people.
• Angiotensin II receptor blockers (ARBs). Medications such as losartan (Cozaar) have benefits similar to ACE inhibitors but don't cause a persistent cough.
• Calcium channel blockers. These medications prevent calcium from entering cells of the heart and blood vessel walls. This relaxes the muscle in the vessel walls, which lets the blood vessels open wider and reduces blood pressure. Examples include amlodipine (Norvasc) and diltiazem (Cardizem, Tiazac).
• Diuretics. Medications known as thiazide-type diuretics reduce the amount of fluid in your blood vessels, lowering blood pressure. Examples include chlorthalidone and hydrochlorothiazide (Microzide).
• Beta blockers. Medications such as atenolol (Tenormin) can lower your heart rate, reduce blood pressure and prevent some of the harmful effects of stress hormones. Beta blockers aren't usually given as an initial treatment for hypertension. Your doctor might recommend adding a beta blocker if another type of medication isn't effective alone.

Surgery or other procedures

Aortic valve stenosis treatment

Left ventricular hypertrophy that is caused by aortic valve stenosis might require surgery to repair the narrow valve or to replace it with an artificial or tissue valve.

Treating other underlying conditions

• Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy treatment. Left ventricular hypertrophy due to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy may be treated with medication, a nonsurgical procedure, surgery, implanted devices and lifestyle changes.
• Amyloidosis. Treatment for amyloidosis includes medications, chemotherapy and possibly a stem cell transplant. Treatment for amyloidosis is available at specialized clinics.

• Treatment of sleep apnea. If you've already been diagnosed with sleep apnea, treating this sleep disorder may lower your blood pressure and help reverse left ventricular hypertrophy if it's caused by high blood pressure.

  If you haven't been diagnosed with sleep apnea, but your partner tells you that you snore or that you stop breathing momentarily while you sleep, talk with your doctor about getting tested for sleep apnea.

  Sleep apnea treatment involves using a machine that provides continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) while you sleep. CPAP keeps your airways open, allowing you to get the oxygen you need to keep your blood pressure at a normal level.