Heart valves are thin flaps or leaflets, of tissue that ensure proper blood flow through the heart, preventing backflow.

The heart has four valves: the mitral, tricuspid, aortic, and pulmonary valves.

The valvular disease can affect any of these four valves, and disrupt normal blood flow through the heart.

Types of valvular diseases:

Valvular stenosis: Narrowing of the valve opening due to stiff or thickened valve tissue strains the heart to work harder to pump blood. If the narrowing is mild, overall heart function may not be affected but severe narrowing can reduce blood flow to the body and strain the heart and affect its functioning.

Valvular regurgitation: An incompetent, insufficient, or leaky valve that does not close completely, allowing the blood to flow backward, causing inefficient circulation and putting additional strain on the heart. This backward flow is referred to as “regurgitant flow.

Valve disease can be congenital (present at birth) or acquired later in life. These may involve changes in the structure of your valve or infection, such as rheumatic fever which causes the heart valve leaflets to become inflamed, and may cause the leaflets to stick together and become scarred, rigid, thickened, and shortened.

Other causes of valve disease include CAD, heart attacks, cardiomyopathy (heart muscle disease), syphilis, hypertension, aortic aneurysms, connective tissue diseases, and less commonly, tumors some types of drugs and radiation.

• Breathlessness during exertion
• Waking up at night short of breath
• Palpitations (irregular, fluttery heartbeat)
• Angina (chest pain) caused by the blood vessels supplying the heart muscle are not getting enough blood.
• Swelling of the ankles or feet
• Fatigue
• Dizziness or fainting

Treatment depends on the state of the valve. If the disease is minimal, medical therapy may be prescribed to relieve the symptoms.

But in advanced cases of valvular heart disease, Balloon valvuloplasty is a minimally invasive procedure where a catheter with a balloon tip is used to open the narrowed valve, resulting in improving blood flow across.