A method for improving blood flow in the heart provides a catheter system with an outer catheter defining at least one lumen and an inner catheter defining at least one lumen with proximal and distal portions. An introducer is coupled to the distal portion of the inner catheter. The introducer has a tissue piercing distal end. A resistive heater element is positioned in the introducer. The catheter system is introduced into a patient's vasculature. The inner catheter is then introduced through the a lumen of the outer catheter to a selected heart site. The tissue piercing distal end of the introducer is then advanced into an interior of the heart at the selected heart site. Energy is delivered to the selected heart site from the resistive heater element to create a blood conducting pathway and/or stimulate angiogenesis. In an alternative embodiment, a heart treatment apparatus is provided that includes a handpiece with a proximal and a distal end and an elongated member defining at least one lumen coupled to the handpiece distal end. The elongated member has a distal end and an introducer coupled to the distal end. The introducer has a tissue piercing distal end. A resistive heater element is positioned in the introducer. The tissue piercing distal end is introduced through a port in the chest wall into a chest cavity and through an epicardial surface of the heart wall to a selected site within the heart. Energy is delivered to the selected heart site from the resistive heater element to create a blood conducting pathway and/or stimulate angiogenesis.