Valvular Heart Disease

📖What is Valvular Heart Disease?

Valvular heart disease occurs when one or more of the heart's four valves fail to open or close properly, disrupting the normal one-way flow of blood through the heart. Valves can become narrowed, a condition called stenosis, restricting blood flow, or they can become leaky, called regurgitation, allowing blood to flow backward. In India, rheumatic heart disease resulting from untreated streptococcal throat infections remains an important cause, alongside age-related degenerative valve changes seen increasingly as the population ages. Depending on which valve is affected and the severity of dysfunction, the heart may have to work harder over time, eventually leading to heart failure if left untreated. Diagnosis is made primarily through echocardiography, and treatment ranges from monitoring to valve repair or replacement surgery.

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