What is a Bicuspid Aortic Valve and how does it fail?
The aortic valve, in its ideal form, is a one-way valve that channels blood from the left ventricle to the aorta. In its normal form it consists of three leaflets residing between the left ventricle and the aorta. It is currently believed that the aortic valve does not have an active component that opens and closes the valve, but rather responds to the slightest pressure gradients between the left ventricle and aorta. Therefore, when the pressure in the left ventricle is higher than in the aorta the valve opens and allows the flow of blood to the aorta and subsequently to the entire body. When the pressure on either side of the valve begins to equilibrate the valve closes and forms a tight seal. This allows blood held in the left atrium to pool in the left ventricle in preparation of the next contracture of the left ventricular myocardium. In this way the normal three leaflets of the aortic valve function together to assist in the actions of the heart. There is a variant, as is often t
