What causes valvular heart disease?
Valve disease can develop before birth (congenital) or can be acquired sometime during one’s lifetime. Sometimes the cause of valve disease is unknown. Congenital valve disease. Most often affects the aortic or pulmonic valve. Valves may be the wrong size, have malformed leaflets, or have leaflets that are not attached to the annulus correctly. Bicuspid aortic valve disease is a congenital valve disease that affects the aortic valve. Instead of the normal three leaflets or cusps, the bicuspid aortic valve has only two. Without the third leaflet, the valve may be stiff (unable to open or close properly) or leaky (not able close tightly). Acquired valve disease. This includes problems that develop with valves that were once normal. These may involve changes in the structure or your valve due to a variety of diseases or infections, including rheumatic fever or endocarditis. • Rheumatic fever is caused by an untreated bacterial infection (usually strep. throat). Luckily, the introduction o
