Heart Defect Mitral

Mitral heart disease

Mitral heart disease is a pathology of the heart valve located between the left atrium and the left ventricle. The main signs of this disease are disturbances in the functioning of the mitral valve, which lead to reverse flow of blood from the left ventricle into the left atrium during left ventricular systole.

The causes of the development of mitral heart disease can be congenital anomalies of the valve leaflets, rheumatism, infective endocarditis, atherosclerosis, and chest trauma. The most common condition is mitral valve insufficiency, in which the valve leaflets cannot completely close the opening between the atrium and the ventricle.

The main symptoms of mitral heart disease: shortness of breath, weakness, fatigue, swelling in the legs, ars cordis (palpitations). This disease is diagnosed using auscultation (listening to heart murmurs), ECG, echocardiography, and chest x-ray.

Treatment of mitral heart disease includes drug therapy to reduce the load on the heart, and in severe forms, surgery may be required - valve surgery or valve replacement. With timely diagnosis and adequate treatment, the prognosis for life is favorable.