A radiofrequency, or RF, ablation system for performing an RF ablation procedure, the RF ablation system comprising: an energy source for delivering energy to a patient's body; one or more energy delivery devices (106, 192) electrically coupled to the energy source, wherein the one or more energy delivery devices each comprise a cooled RF probe comprising a proximal end and a distal end, the distal end comprising an active distal tip; one or more sensors for measuring local perfusion characteristics at an ablation site within the patient, the local perfusion characteristics including i) a steady-state temperature within the cooled RF probe, ii) a temperature of a tissue outside of the ablation site, and iii) a lesion temperature at the ablation site; and at least one processor configured to perform a plurality of operations, the plurality of operations comprising: generating a temperature response profile by activating a flow of cooling fluid within the cooled RF probe and subsequently monitoring the local perfusion characteristics over a time period, wherein a slope of the temperature response profile defines a heat transfer due to local perfusion at the ablation site; determining an operating threshold for the one or more energy delivery devices based on the temperature response profile, wherein the operating threshold compensates for heat loss due to the local perfusion based on the slope of the temperature response profile; and controlling the one or more energy delivery devices to create a lesion at the ablation site within the patient by applying RF energy at the operating threshold. an energy source for delivering energy to a patient's body; one or more energy delivery devices (106, 192) electrically coupled to the energy source, wherein the one or more energy delivery devices each comprise a cooled RF probe comprising a proximal end and a distal end, the distal end comprising an active distal tip; one or more sensors for measuring local perfusion characteristics at an ablation site within the patient, the local perfusion characteristics including i) a steady-state temperature within the cooled RF probe, ii) a temperature of a tissue outside of the ablation site, and iii) a lesion temperature at the ablation site; and at least one processor configured to perform a plurality of operations, the plurality of operations comprising: generating a temperature response profile by activating a flow of cooling fluid within the cooled RF probe and subsequently monitoring the local perfusion characteristics over a time period, wherein a slope of the temperature response profile defines a heat transfer due to local perfusion at the ablation site; determining an operating threshold for the one or more energy delivery devices based on the temperature response profile, wherein the operating threshold compensates for heat loss due to the local perfusion based on the slope of the temperature response profile; and controlling the one or more energy delivery devices to create a lesion at the ablation site within the patient by applying RF energy at the operating threshold. generating a temperature response profile by activating a flow of cooling fluid within the cooled RF probe and subsequently monitoring the local perfusion characteristics over a time period, wherein a slope of the temperature response profile defines a heat transfer due to local perfusion at the ablation site; determining an operating threshold for the one or more energy delivery devices based on the temperature response profile, wherein the operating threshold compensates for heat loss due to the local perfusion based on the slope of the temperature response profile; and controlling the one or more energy delivery devices to create a lesion at the ablation site within the patient by applying RF energy at the operating threshold.