Congenital Heart Valve Disease
Valve disease can be congenital (developed from birth).
Developed Heart Valve Disease
Heart valve disease can also be acquired during life due to:
- Previous heart attack or heart injury.
-High blood pressure
-Atherosclerosis in the aorta also contributes
- Previous heart attack or heart injury.
-High blood pressure
-Atherosclerosis in the aorta also contributes
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-Age. Calcium can build-up in older individuals, covering the heart valves (especially aortic). This thickens the valves and causes stenosis.
-Rheumatic fever. This is a severe fever caused by untreated bacterial infections, such as strep throat. The conditions harms the heart valves, by making them stick together, and get weathered down and damaged, causing leaky valves. The heart valve problems are not noticeable until almost 20-40 years after the Rheumatic fever has passed.
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-Infective Endocarditis (IE) is a very serious infection. When germs enter the body though needles, dental procedures, surgery, breaks in skin, etc, the germs can go to the heart and cause endocarditis. It damages the heart valves. People with existing heart valve diseases can still get endocarditis, which makes their condition worse.
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