Mitral Valve Regurgitation: Causes, Symptoms, Diagnosis And Treatment

Your heart is like clever a blood-pumping machine, complete with valves to ensure that the blood flows in the right direction. Unfortunately, much like machines, the valves of the heart can become impaired and stop working properly, leading to the development of disease.

So, what is mitral valve regurgitation and what causes it?

Mitral valve regurgitation develops because the valve that is located between the two left chambers of the heart doesn’t close tightly enough. There are are several reasons why people may develop mitral valve regurgitation, including:

• Mitral valve prolapse, a common heart defect that prevents the mitral valve from closing tightly.
• Impaired tissue cords. Tissue cords help anchor the flaps of the mitral valve, and over time, they can become damaged.
• Rheumatic fever. Rheumatic fever has been shown to cause damage to the mitral valve and lead to mitral valve regurgitation.
• Endocarditis, a disease caused by an infection that affects the lining of the heart and heart valves. Endocarditis can lead to mitral valve regurgitation.
• Heart attack. When patients experience heart attacks, it often affects the area of the heart muscle surrounding the mitral valve, causing the function of the valve to be affected. If the damage is severe, that can cause mitral valve regurgitation.
• Cardiomyopathy. This disease affects the heart muscles. Certain conditions, such as high blood pressure, can cause your heart to work harder which makes your heart muscles become large. This can cause stretching of the mitral valve, leading to leakage and regurgitation.
• Trauma. Experiencing severe trauma can cause mitral valve regurgitation.
• Congenital heart defects. This disease refers to when babies are born with defects that affect the heart. These can cause mitral valve regurgitation if the defects affect the valves.
• Medicines. Certain medicines, such as Cafergot and Migergot, can cause mitral valve regurgitation.
• Radiation treatment. A small amount of people that receive radiation therapy directed towards the chest may experience mitral valve regurgitation.
• Atrial fibrillation. This is a common issue that causes problems with heart rhythms, and can cause mitral valve regurgitation.

What are the risk factors for mitral valve regurgitation?

There are several risk factors that can increase your risk of developing mitral valve regurgitation. These include:

• Having previously experienced a mitral valve prolapse
• Having previously experienced a mitral valve stenosis (a condition in which the heart’s mitral valve is narrowed)
• A family history of mitral valve prolapse or mitral valve stenosis
• Having had a heart attack
• Certain heart diseases, such as coronary artery disease
• Using certain medications
• Infections, including endocarditis and rheumatic fever
• Having a congenital heart disease, such as a heart defect
• Age, as natural damage that is inflicted on the heart valves over time and most people start to experience some degree of mitral valve regurgitation

How do I know if I have mitral valve regurgitation?

You have to watch out for the symptoms of the disease, but many people with mitral valve disease don’t actually experience symptoms for quite a while. Symptoms associated with mitral valve regurgitation include:

• Your heart sounds abnormal (through the use of a stethoscope) as you may have a heart murmur.
• You feel short of breath, a condition known as dyspnea. This may be particularly prominent after you have been very active or when you start to lie down.
• Feeling fatigued or tired.
• Heart palpitations, which refers to a rapid, fluttering heartbeat.
• Swollen ankles or feet that.

How do you treat mitral valve regurgitation?

Generally, treatment for mitral valve regurgitation entirely depends on the severity of your disease, including whether its progressing and if you present with any symptoms. For patients who are only experiencing mild leakage, treatment for mitral valve regurgitation is not necessary. However, if your condition is worse and you are experiencing severe leakage, you may need to undergo heart surgery to repair or replace the valve. It is important to carefully evaluate if you need treatment because severe but untreated mitral valve regurgitation can lead to the heart failure or heart rhythm problems (arrhythmias).

What are some of the complications associated with mitral valve regurgitation?

These are some of the complications associated with mitral valve regurgitation:

• Heart failure, when your heart doesn’t pump enough blood to the rest of your body.
• Atrial fibrillation, impairment of heart rhythm.
• Pulmonary hypertension, high blood pressure in the blood vessels of the lungs.