What is the purpose of valsalva maneuver?
The Valsalva maneuver is used with patients who have suspected heart abnormalities, often in conjunction with echocardiography. The maneuver is based on the fact that when a patient forcibly exhales against a closed nose and mouth while bearing down, as if having a bowel movement, specific changes occur in blood pressure and the rate and volume of blood returning to the heart. Comparing the changes in a diseased heart to those expected in a normal heart gives clues to the type and location of heart damage. In addition, when a doctor listens to the chest with a stethoscope during the Valsalva maneuver, characteristic heart sounds are heard. Variations in these sounds can indicate the type of abnormality present in the heart. A 2004 study found that blood pressure response to the Valsalva maneuver could predict mortality in elderly patients with congestive heart failure. This could prove to be a new noninvasive way to help determine how long elderly patients with congestive heart failure
