Northwestern Memorial Hospital Logo

Home > Cardiovascular Institute > Heart Valve Disease

Mitral Valve Disease

Mitral valve disease is the most common form of heart valve disease in the United States affecting 5 percent of the population, resulting in over 500,000 hospital admissions per year. There are two general forms of mitral valve disease: mitral regurgitation/insufficiency and mitral stenosis.

Mitral regurgitation/insufficiency is very common and refers to an incompetent valve that leaks blood backward from the left ventricle into the left atrium. This causes an increased workload on the heart and, when severe, may result in congestive heart failure. Mitral regurgitation is classified into four types: ischemic, degenerative, rheumatic, and infectious. Ischemic and degenerative (or myxomatous) mitral regurgitation account for most cases of mitral valve disease and occur with almost equal frequency in the United States.

Mitral stenosis is a disease in which the valve becomes thickened and narrowed, often with calcium buildup, obstructing blood flow through the valve. This causes increased back pressure of blood in the lungs resulting in congestive heart failure. Mitral stenosis occurs less commonly than mitral regurgitation/insufficiency in the United States, but when it does occur, it is usually a manifestation of rheumatic heart disease, which occurs in some people with a history of rheumatic fever.

Mitral valve disease is very complex and requires careful analysis to properly identify and characterize the disease so that optimal treatment strategies are achieved for each patient. At the Center for Heart Valve Disease at the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, the team of cardiovascular specialists work together to diagnose and treat mitral valve disease using:

• the American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology (AHA/ACC) Guidelines for the Management of Patients with Valvular Heart Disease that assist physicians in clinical decision making for the prevention, diagnosis, and management of heart valve disease

• the most advanced imaging techniques available (including 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional echocardiography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to study the mitral valve in patients with valvular heart disease

Patients are also closely followed by heart valve coordinator, Susan Underwood, RN who is available to answer questions and assist patients and referring cardiologists.

Contact
For more information regarding mitral valve disease and the treatments available, please contact the Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute at (866) 662-8467, or request an appointment online.

Visit the Northwestern Memorial Hospital's Health Learning Center and Alberto Culver Women's Health Learning Center. These state-of-the-art health information libraries are among the largest hospital-based learning facilities of their kind. For more information call (312) 926-5465.

Review Date: 08/07