Heart Valve Problems
Key points
- The heart has four valves — the aortic, mitral, tricuspid and pulmonary valves.
- Many patients with mild heart valve problems have no cardiac symptoms, and the abnormal valve is discovered only when a heart murmur is heard during a physical examination.
- If you are having symptoms, your doctor will begin by evaluating your risk of heart valve problems.
- In general, heart valve problems persist throughout life and may gradually worsen with time.
What Is It?
The heart has four valves — the aortic, mitral, tricuspid and pulmonary valves. Like valves used in house plumbing, the heart valves open to allow fluid (blood) to be pumped forward, and they close to prevent fluid from flowing backward. Human heart valves are formed by flaps of tissue called leaflets or cusps.
Heart valve problems fall into two categories:
- Stenosis — The opening of the valve is too narrow, and this interferes with the forward flow of blood
- Regurgitation — The valve doesn't close properly. It leaks, sometimes causing a significant backflow of blood.
In addition, heart valve problems can be congenital, which means present at birth or acquired at birth.
A heart valve problem is classified as congenital when some factor during fetal development causes the valve to form abnormally. Congenital heart-valve disease affects about one in 1,000 newborns, with the majority of these infants having stenosis of either the pulmonary or aortic valve. Although a specific cause cannot be determined in most affected children, researchers believe that many cases are caused by genetic (inherited) factors. This is because there is a considerably high risk (2 percent to 6 percent) of valve abnormalities in the parents and siblings of affected newborns, compared with the overall risk of less than 1 percent in the general population. In 2 percent to 4 percent of heart valve problems, the heart defect is related to health or environmental factors that affected the mother during pregnancy. These factors include diabetes, phenylketonuria, rubella infection, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE or lupus) or drugs taken by the mother (alcohol, lithium, certain seizure medications).
A heart-valve problem is acquired if it occurs in a valve that was structurally normal at birth. Some common causes of acquired heart valve problems include:
- Rheumatic fever — an inflammatory illness that may follow an untreated strep throat infection
- Endocarditis — inflammation and infection of the heart valves
- Idiopathic calcific aortic stenosis — a degenerative condition seen in the elderly, in which the aortic valve cusps become thickened, fused and infiltrated with calcium
- Syphilis
- High blood pressure ( hypertension )
- Arteriosclerosis
- Connective-tissue disorders — such as Marfan's syndrome
Heart valve problems, whether congenital or acquired, affect each valve in a slightly different way.
Aortic valveThe aortic valve opens to allow blood to pass from the left ventricle to the aorta, the massive blood vessel that directs oxygenated blood from the heart to the rest of the body. Disorders of this valve include:
Written and revised by
Gerald Hurowitz, M.D.
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health.am provides general information, not medical advice. Always consult a qualified health professional about your own health.