What are Heart Valve Diseases? How Are They Treated?
Today, valvular heart disease is one of the most common diseases. The heart consists of chambers. There are valves between these chambers to ensure the passage of blood, thanks to these valves, the passage of blood is ensured. The valves open to whichever side the blood will pass. After the blood has passed, they close completely.
There are 4 heart valves in total. The names of the valves are; aortic valve, mitral valve, pulmonary valve and tricuspid valve. These valves in the heart, which is one of the most important organs of the body and pumps blood throughout the body, must function in a healthy way. If there are problems in one or more of the valves that adversely affect the pumping function of the heart, it is necessary to go for treatment and perform the necessary valve repair procedure. Medical replacement is required. Problems with the tricuspid and pulmonary valves alone are not common, unless they are congenital. There are two main causes that often occur in the heart valves. Let’s take a look at them now;
Stenosis (Stenosis)
When valve stenosis occurs, the valve thickens. In addition, the leaflets of the valve harden or stick together. This problem causes the valve to fail to open fully and reduces the level of blood passing through the valve. This increases the workload of the heart and causes it to spend extra effort to pump more blood. If this condition persists for a long time, it will cause problems leading to heart failure. Let us remind you that it can occur not only in one valve but also in more than one valve at the same time.
Regurgitation (Regurgitation)
In the case of regurgitation, the leaflets in the valves are not able to fully perform their closing function, which causes a certain level of blood to escape back through the valve. Leakage in the valve indicates valve insufficiency. This is usually caused by prolapsed valves and prolabsus. The more blood that escapes, the harder the heart has to work to replace it and the more fatigued it becomes, resulting in less blood flow to other parts of the body.
What Causes Valve Diseases?
The causes of valve diseases can be analyzed in two main groups. One of these is congenital and the second is acquired valvular heart diseases. It is a condition that can be caused by congenital anomaly or acquired later.
Congenital (Congenital) Valve Diseases
The causes of congenital valvular disease are often the result of an adverse effect on the pulmonary valve or the aortic valve. The leaflet shapes of the heart valve may not be as they should be. Or they may not be the desired size. One of the 4 valves in the heart may not have developed at all, a condition called atrasia.
Normally, the number of leaves in the aortic valve is 3. In some cases, this number of leaflets may be 2 leaflets due to congenital anomaly. It is medically called bicuspid. It is not a life-threatening condition. In this condition called bicuspid, hardening of the valve may occur and the risk of blood backflow increases in this way. However, it increases the risk of problems with the aortic valve in the future.
Post-occurring Heart Valve Diseases
People who do not have any congenital problems may develop valvular diseases later in life, which may be caused by certain infections or various diseases. There are many changes that can occur in the heart valves. The papillary muscles and chordae tendinea in the mitral valve, which are responsible for the movement of the valves, can stretch or tear. This can lead to enlargement of the annulus of the valves and calcification and hardening of the leaflets.
Another common valvular disease that we have just mentioned is mitral valve pralapse, which occurs in the mitral valve and is seen between 1% and 2% in total and is known to be more common in women than in men. The abbreviation is MPV. In mitral valve prolapse, if one or both of the mitral valve leaflets do not close completely when the heart contracts, some of the blood that would go to the left ventricle returns to the left antrium and MPV occurs. Mild leakage is often asymptomatic and often does not require treatment. However, when the level of leakage increases, symptoms such as shortness of breath, tachycardia and rapid fatigue occur and require treatment.
What are the Causes of Valve Diseases?
Rheumatic fever; a bacterial infection that needs to be treated, this can often be a throat infection. It should also be known that infections overcome in childhood can cause heart diseases. Heart diseases that may occur for these reasons show themselves after an average of 20 to 40 years. Until it occurs, the valve leaves will thicken, harden and stick together. This is often seen in the mitral valve.
Endocarditis: As a result of viruses, fungal agents or bacteria entering the bloodstream, they can be located on the heart valves and endocarditis occurs. They cause deterioration of the valves and scar formation. These types of microbes can enter the circulatory system as a result of surgical procedures, dental treatments, IV drug use or serious infections. Treatment is often provided by surgery.
What are the Other Causes of Valve Diseases?
When we look at other factors that cause valvular heart diseases; high blood pressure, coronary artery disease, connective tissue disorders, heart attacks, trauma to the chest, aortic aneurysm formation on the valve, age-related calcification of the valve (calcium accumulation in the valves)
What is the Treatment Approach for Valve Diseases?
The most important factor in the formation of valve diseases caused by rheumatic heart disease, regardless of which valve the problem is in and regardless of the extent of the problem, is to take precautions against infections by giving antibiotics before interventions where bleeding occurs, such as tooth extractions and childbirth. If antibiotics are not administered during these procedures, as a result of the contamination of the blood with microbes, they can be positioned on the diseased valves and multiply, causing further damage to the already damaged valves and causing more difficult infections. So endocarditis can occur. Especially people with valve disease should definitely tell their physicians about this condition. In this way, the physician will take the necessary precautions. If necessary, the physician will contact the patient’s cardiologist and exchange the necessary information.
Rheumatic valvular diseases often involve more than one valve at different levels. For example, mitral stenosis and aortic regurgitation may occur at the same time or aortic regurgitation, aortic stenosis and tricuspid regurgitation may occur at the same time. If the valve diseases are mild or moderate, the physician will often prescribe medication and a successful result will be obtained. Depending on the valve type, when the disease progresses and has some symptoms, balloon therapy is used to open the stenosis or surgery is used.
The progression of valve stenosis or insufficiency in valve diseases is different in each person. In some people, valve problems are mild and do not require treatment other than lifelong medication, while in others, medication is not even necessary and only regular follow-up is required. However, if treatment is necessary, the person should never postpone it, otherwise the disease will progress further and treatment will become more difficult and life-threatening problems will arise. The heart will start to suffer more and more damage. In the later stages, even if the person accepts the treatment, it should be known that the desired success will not be achieved.