All about mitral valve surgery information!

One in ten Americans suffers from mitral valve prolapse and the vast majority has no symptoms and will never know that they have it.

Valves are located in your heart to keep blood from backing up. With aging, some of these valves can stretch and to close completely, so they allow a small amount of blood to leak backwards. This is usually harmless, but can be associated with an irregular heart beat or chest pain caused by a stretching of the muscles that hold the valves in place. Patients with mitral valve prolapse usually do not seek out medical help unless a doctor hears a murmur or click in the heart (85 percent), the patient suffers from chest pain (31 percent) or palpitations (40 percent), suddenly passes out (40 percent), feels excessively tired (22 percent) or is short of breath (10.5 percent). Mitral valve prolapse is hereditary for one patient in five.

At the Maryland Heart Center, we specialize in the surgical treatment of valvular disease, including mitral valve surgery. Mitral valve repair is used to treat regurgitation (leakage) or stenosis (narrowing) of the mitral valve. Traditionally, surgeons have treated mitral valve disease by removing the diseased valve and implanting an artificial valve (valve replacement).

Now, cardiac surgeons at the Maryland Heart Center are leaders in repairing the mitral valve. About 92 percent of patients at the Heart Center will have their valve repaired instead of replaced. That's well above the national average, where typically 55 percent of patients have their valve repaired.

When germs get into the bloodstream, they can stick to the rough edges of prolapsed mitral valve and cause an infection, so doctors recommend that people who have this condition take antibiotics whenever germs can enter their bloodstreams, such as during dental or other surgical procedures or when they have a cold. The vast majority of people with mitral valve prolapse do not need any treatment, but those who are bothered by irregular heart beats or chest pain are often given beta blockers, such as propranolol to control symptoms. You may also visit the official website at http://www.umm.edu/