Valvular heart disease is a medical condition of the heart characterized by certain damage (or birth defect) to the heart valves. The heart valves consist of the mitral, the aortic, the tricuspid and the pulmonary valve.
The mitral and tricuspid valves are in duty to control the flow of blood between the the upper and lower chambers of the heart (atria and ventricles). The pulmonary valve controls the flow from the heart to the lungs. The aortic valve rules the flow between the heart and the aorta (and blood vessels that supply the rest of the body with blood. The mitral and aortic valves are the most affected by valvular heart disease and similar conditions.
Valves ensure blood flow, proper force and direction. With valvular disease the valves tend to become too narrow and stenotic (hardened). They cannot open fully and are not able to close properly.
Stenotic valve is forcing blood back the in the adjacent chamber of the heart.
An incompetent (not closing properly) valve makes blood leak back in the chamber. Compensating poor pumping action, the heart enlarges and thickens and loses its elasticity and efficiency in the long term. In some cases the blood leaking in the heart chambers has a tendency to clot and thus increase the risk of a stroke or pulmonary embolism.
The severity of valvular disease of the heart varies greatly. In mild cases there are usually no symptoms. In advanced cases valvular disease can cause congestive heart failure as well as various complications.
Symptoms
Among the main symptoms of valvular heart disease are sharp, severe chest pain, persistent shortness of breath, palpitations and/or dizziness.
Valve heart disease symptoms often occur suddenly. If the disease advances slowly the heart may be able to adjust and the patient may not easily notice any symptoms. The severity of symptoms often does not correlate to the severity of the disease and a person could have almost no symptoms, but still suffer from severe heart valve disease. On the other hand, severe symptoms could be caused even by a relatively small valve leak.
Many heart valve symptoms happen to be very similar to symptoms that are usually associated with conditions such as congestive heart failure - shortness of breath, wheezing after physical exertion, swelling feet, swelling of the ankles, the hands or the abdomen.
Among the most common symptoms are:
• Mild to severe chest pain
• Dizziness (aortic stenosis)
• Fainting (aortic stenosis)
• Fevers (bacterial endocarditis)
• Palpitation
• Fatigue
• Rapid gain of weight
What causes valvular heart disease
Since there are various types of valve heart disease, some types are present at birth (known as congenital), while other types can be acquired at a later stage of life.
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