Mitral Valve Repair

The most common cause of mitral regurgitation is a condition called degenerative mitral valve disease—this is also called mitral valve prolapse, myxomatous mitral valve disease, and a floppy mitral valve. Such valves can be repaired (rather than replaced) in more than 95% of patients. When a mitral valve allows significant blood to flow backward, it becomes dangerous. So your heart has to work harder to pump blood and eventually, your heart can’t keep up causing heart failure. Mitral valve repair is the best way to treat the condition before before troublesome symptoms or irreversible damage occurs to the heart. Cardiologists recommend mitral valve repair based on the severity of your heart’s mitral valve regurgitation and your symptoms.

Mitral valve repair has advantages over mitral valve replacement, including :

• No need for blood-thinning medications
• Better heart function after surgery
• Fewer risks of future strokes or valve infections
• No need for later surgery to replace a worn-out valve