Heart Valve Disease

Like a car engine or washing machine, your heart is equipped with valves, which open and close to keep blood flowing from one heart chamber to the next, before being pumped out to the rest of the body. But defects can narrow valve openings and restrict normal blood flow, often causing unpleasant symptoms or serious complications. 

One of the most common and serious diseases of the heart valves, called aortic stenosis (AS), affects about 1.5 million Americans. Many people don’t have symptoms, but those with severe AS who fail to replace a bad valve have a roughly 50 percent chance of dying within two to three years. 

Riverside Heart & Vascular Institute treats the full range of heart valve diseases with the most up-to-date methods available. Heart valve diseases become more common with age and can decrease your energy and increase your risk for serious health problems. If you develop a valve disease that requires treatment, our goal is to treat the affected valve either surgically or non-invasively, which will help put some spring back in your step and safeguard your cardiovascular health.

To request an appointment close to home, call (844) 404-4787 or fill out our quick form. Or, find a Riverside valve disease specialist anytime online.

About Aortic Stenosis

Blood flows through the four chambers of the heart - two on the top, known as atria, and two on the bottom, called ventricles. The last stop is the left ventricle, which pumps blood out of the heart and into the largest vessel in the body, the aorta. The aorta then branches into increasingly smaller vessels to provide blood to tissue and organs. 

The aortic valve is critical to the circulation of blood throughout the body. However, some people are born with a defect known as a bicuspid aortic valve that restricts blood flow out of the left ventricle. Also, more commonly, narrowing of the aortic valve occurs as a person ages due to the accumulation of calcium deposits and other changes. In both cases, the condition is called aortic stenosis (AS). Between two percent and seven percent of people aged 65 years and older have AS that causes symptoms, a figure that rises to about 13 percent among people 75 years and older. 

AS doesn’t always cause symptoms, but speak with your doctor if you develop any of the following:

• Shortness of breath
• Chest pain, pressure or tightness
• Fainting
• Palpitations, or sensation of pounding or fluttering in your chest
• Lack of energy

Mitral Valve Disorders

The mitral valve is formed by two flaps of tissue that open and close to regulate the flow of blood from the heart’s left atrium into the left ventricle. Disorders of the mitral valve often cause no symptoms, but in some cases can turn severe and require treatment. Disorders include: 

• Mitral valve stenosis: Like aortic stenosis, this problem can occur if the flaps stiffen, preventing them from opening wide and limiting the movement of blood. Symptoms include shortness of breath, lack of energy and palpitations. 
• Mitral valve regurgitation: If the mitral flaps become weakened, they may not close completely, allowing blood to leak backward into the left atrium. Shortness of breath is a common symptom. 
• Mitral valve prolapse: In this condition, the mitral flaps flop backward and into the left atrium. Most people with mitral valve prolapse never know it, but the condition can cause symptoms such as chest pain, palpitations, headaches
  and
  dizziness.

Treating Heart Valve Disease

The usual approach to treating defective heart valves is surgery to widen, repair or replace the defective tissues. If you have a heart valve that isn’t working properly, you may be a candidate for one of these procedures:

• Valvuloplasty: In this minimally invasive procedure, your doctor inserts a very small, narrow, hollow tube (called a catheter) into a blood vessel in the groin and advances it through the aorta into the heart. Once the catheter reaches the stiff valve, your doctor inflates a large balloon at the tip of the catheter until the flaps of the valve are pushed open. Your doctor then deflates the balloon and removes the catheter.
• Aortic valve replacement (AVR): If you have severe aortic stenosis, your doctor will likely recommend this open-heart procedure, in which the damaged valve is replaced with an artificial one.
• Mitral valve repair: To repair a defective mitral valve, your doctor will use delicate instruments to reconstruct the tissues and restore proper function. The most common approach requires your surgeon to separate the breastbone and spread the ribs to gain direct access to the heart.