Mitral Valve Prolapse
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- Shortness of breath
- An irregular or rapid heartbeat
- Or chest pain
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Treatment for Mitral Valve Prolapse
Patients with severe mitral valve prolapse may require surgery to repair or replace the mitral valve. The operation is performed under general anesthesia, which means you will be asleep during surgery.
First, the surgeon makes a vertical incision in the front of the chest, opens the breastbone, and exposes the heart. Blood from the heart is redirected to a bypass machine. The bypass machine does the job of the heart and lungs during the operation.
Then, the surgeon opens the heart and exposes the mitral valve. If the valve is being repaired, the surgeon removes the diseased portion, and reconstructs it using the surrounding natural tissue.
If the valve is being replaced, the surgeon removes the entire valve and replaces it with an artificial valve. The artificial valve can be either mechanical or from an animal donor.
The surgeon then shuts down the heart-lung bypass machine, and the heart starts beating again. The surgeon then closes the breastbone and chest incision, and applies bandages to the incision site.
Recovery