The series' host, Thomas P. Campbell, MD, is chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine at The Western Pennsylvania Hospital. The four valves in the heart are designed to allow smooth blood flow in one direction. They may, however, become diseased.
Stenosis is a constriction or narrowing of the valve opening.
This makes blood flow through the valve difficult. Valve regurgitation occurs when the valves do not shut completely, resulting in part of the blood moving backwards through the valve into the chamber where it came from. These diseases cause extra work for the heart and usually occur in the two left sided heart valves. Medications can be effective for some patients with heart valve disease. However, when symptoms such as chest pain, fatigue, and shortness of breath become severe enough to limit the patient's lifestyle, surgery is usually necessary.