The Mitral valve is one of the essential components of your heart; it controls the blood flow through pulmonary veins to the heart and eventually your whole body. The valve has flaps, and if that does not work properly, then the heart has to work harder, which can eventually cause blood clots, stroke, and even congestive heart failure.
Mitral valve diseases are more common than you think. However, with proper treatment people suffering from issues like mitral stenosis, can live a healthy life. Generally, doctors prefer repair over replacement for any mitral valve-related disease and it generally involves open heart surgery. This is because repairing has more benefits and fewer risks involved. But for some cases, replacement might be the only choice.
Before getting a mitral valve surgery, it is essential to know why you need it and what you expect. It involves all the risks, like any other heart surgery, but by using advanced technologies these are now safer and more effective than before.
Conditions That Can Be Repaired
Several mitral valve diseases can be repaired, like:
- Mitral valve regurgitation or leaky valve occurs when the flaps do not close properly. This can cause the blood to leak in the wrong direction. The issue is mostly caused by mitral valve prolapse.
- Mitral stenosis is the narrowing down of your valve opening, and this might prevent enough blood from passing through.
- Mitral valve prolapse is a condition wherein the flaps get too floppy or stretchy.
With mitral valve repair, these conditions can be fixed and it will also lower the risks of any serious complications in the future.
Benefits Of Mitral Valve Repair?
The mitral valve repair process has several advantages over any other valve replacement procedure, like:
- You will have better chances of surviving and living a healthy life for a longer time.
- You will witness an improved lifestyle.
- It will enable your heart to function in a better way.
- It helps to lower the risks of complications like strokes.
- You will not need to use blood thinners for long.
This is why doctors and surgeons always prefer repair over replacement, whenever there is an option.
Thus, if you have any mitral valve-related disease, especially leaky valves, then you may need mitral valve surgery. Your doctor will thoroughly examine you, do some necessary tests, and give you medication to manage the symptoms. They will keep a close eye on your condition. They might also suggest you get echocardiograms at regular intervals to check your heart conditions. On analyzing those results, they will be able to decide when you need the surgery and whether the valve should be repaired or replaced to reinstate your conditions
