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Heart valves leak when the tissue flaps
that open and close with each heartbeat
don’t seal tightly. As a result, blood flows
back into the heart chamber instead of
forward through your arteries.
In such cases, the heart must work harder
and may not pump as well. As a result, the
risks for heart failure, stroke and cardiac
arrest all increase.
This is why it’s so important to detect and
treat leaks early. And doing that means
getting regular checkups.
A leaky valve could pose serious health problems
When
heart
leak
valves
What are the symptoms?
At a checkup,
a doctor will
listen for a heart
murmur, the
main sign of a
leaky valve.
Other signs can
include unusual
tiredness,
shortness of
breath, and swollen ankles or feet.“A lot of
times, the symptoms will creep up on you
over time,” says Gan Dunnington, MD, a
cardiothoracic surgeon at the Adventist
Heart Institute. “You’ll convince yourself
you’re doing OK—or think you’re just
getting older.” But in reality, your heart
may be trying to tell you it’s in trouble.
How is it treated?
If a leaky valve causes serious health risks,
a surgeon can either repair or replace it.
Your doctor will help determine which
option is best for you.
Sometimes
valve problems
increase the risk
for an irregular
heartbeat, called
atrial fibrillation
(A-Fib). In that
case, “it’s really
important that
if you’re going
to have heart
surgery, your doctor is going to take
care of the A-Fib at the same time,”
says Andreas Sakopoulos, MD, a
cardiothoracic surgeon at the Adventist
Heart Institute. Not all surgeons do that,
though.
At St. Helena Hospital, “we can
fix the valve and the A-Fib at the same
time,” says Dr. Dunnington.
To learn more about our cardiologists
and surgeons, call 888.529.9018
or visit
www.adventistheart.org.Andreas Sakopoulos,
MD, FACS
Gan Dunnington, MD
The sound of a leaky faucet
may keep you up at night—
and raise your water bill.
But there’s another type
of leak that is a bigger
concern: a leaky heart valve.
That kind of leak, over time,
can harm your health.