Mitral Valve Disease

Overview

Heart Specialists at Mayo Clinic are among the most experienced in the country in treating mitral valve disease, evaluating thousands of patients each year. Patients benefit from Mayo Clinic's state-of-the-art facilities, leading-edge medical treatment, and access to clinical trials and new treatments for the disease.

Heart surgeons at Mayo Clinic are renowned for their experience and expertise in repairing and replacing mitral heart valves. They perform more than 500 procedures each year. In some cases, surgery can be done with minimally invasive techniques, including robot-assisted surgery, that can result in significantly less pain and recovery time for patients.

Diagnosis

A team of heart valve disease specialists at Mayo Clinic coordinates the patient's care. A patient can undergo a complete examination and testing, receive a diagnosis and be offered extensive patient education, all in a few days. Test results are usually available within a day in Mayo's state-of-the-art electronic medical record. Read more about mitral valve disease diagnosis.

Treatment Options

Treatment options for mitral valve disease include careful monitoring, medications or heart valve surgery (repair or replacement). Read more about mitral valve disease treatment options.

About Mitral Valve Disease

Four valves open and close to keep blood flowing in the proper direction throughout the heart. The mitral valve connects the heart's upper-left chamber (atrium) to the heart's lower-left chamber (ventricle).

Mitral valve stenosis (mitral stenosis) is a narrowing of the mitral valve. With this narrowing, the valve does not open properly and obstructs blood flow between the left chambers of the heart.

Mitral valve regurgitation (or mitral regurgitation) occurs when the mitral valve doesn't close tightly, allowing blood to flow backward in the heart.

Read more at MayoClinic.com
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Mitral Valve Regurgitation

Mitral Valve Stenosis