- 1. You and Your Healthcare Team The American Heart Association explains that you can improve the care you receive by talking with your healthcare team about your concerns, asking questions and getting the facts.
- 2. Meet Mark Ridder - AHA Heart Valve Ambassador Read about Mark's journey with heart valve disease, which began in high school, when a heart murmur was detected in a routine physical exam. Later in life he was diagnosed with aortic valve stenosis, which ultimately turned severe enough to require valve replacement surgery.
- 3. Roles of Your Four Heart Valves To better understand your valve condition, it helps to know the role each heart valve plays in providing healthy blood circulation.
- 4. Meet Christine Rekash - AHA Heart Valve Ambassador Christine Rekash thought she was prepared for open-heart surgery to repair a failing mitral valve, but several complications following her procedure made her realize that she had to take one step at a time. She now works to raise awareness about heart health and offer support to other patients facing heart valve disorders as part of the American Heart Association?s Heart Valve Ambassador program.
- 5. Heart Valve Awareness: Seek Clarity About Your Risks Educate yourself about your heart valve disease by recognizing and monitoring your risks and working closely with your doctor.
- 6. Heart Valve Diagnosis Criteria As you prepare for heart valve testing for a complete diagnosis, there are several criteria used to determine your particular needs.
- 7. Problem: Pulmonary Valve Regurgitation Pulmonary regurgitation (PR, also called pulmonic regurgitation) is a leaky pulmonary valve. Learn about its symptoms and causes.
- 8. Types of Replacement Heart Valves If you need to have a heart valve replacement, there are several choices to consider when selecting the type of valve you need. Learn more about them.
- 9. Understanding Heart Valve Problems and Causes Many heart valve problems can be identified by the presence of a murmur. This can indicate valve problems such as stenosis, regurgitation, prolapse and atresia.
- 10. Testing for Heart Valve Problems To fully understand your heart valve problem, your medical team may want to perform a series of tests to provide a complete picture of what needs repair and what may be best left alone. Learn about the various tests you may undergo.
