HEART VALVE ABLATION CATHETER

Cardiac annul oplasty methods and devices, based on delivery of tissue-ablating energy to a heart valve annulus, thereby inducing reduction of the valve annulus perimeter. In some embodiments, the reduction is induced by shrinkage of tissue in response to ablation, potentially analogous to tissue shrinkage responsible for pulmonary vein stenosis induced by cardiac ablation to treat atrial fibrillation. In some embodiments, annulus tissue is deformed before ablation energy is applied. This potentially results in plastic deformation apart from tissue shrinkage. Deformation is optionally performed using electrodes that also operate as sharp-tipped jaws of a pliers. They are inserted to tissue in a wider-spaced configuration, reduced in distance to a narrower-spaced tissue-squeezing configuration, and operated to ablate the squeezed tissue. Upon removal of the electrodes, the squeezed tissue retains a new shape as a result of ablation-induced plastic deformation.