Practical information about Fitness Training After Mitral Valve Surgery at Health & Fitness

What Does a Mitral Valve Surgeon Do?

The heart is a complicated organ made up of numerous sub-structures which all have to work together in order to effectively pump blood around your body. If the units of the heart do not work together properly, you can suffer a range of symptoms and even fatal episodes which is why it is important that you look after your heart and health, and where you are unfortunate enough to develop cardiac issues, that they are cared for by specialists and highly trained surgeons.

The mitral valve connects the left atrium to the left ventricle (which lie next to the right atrium and ventricle) - the job of the mitral valve is to regulate the flow of blood between the atrium and ventricle so that when the atrium fills and is ready to pass the blood into the ventricle, the valve opens but when the ventricle is full and in turn is ready to contract, the valve closes so the blood cannot flow backwards.

This is important for several reasons; if blood flows backwards from the ventricle to the atrium, this is known as "mitral regurgitation" and can result in blood clots forming as the blood pools in the left atrium. Blood clots can then result in stroke or other cardiac episodes and both may be fatal. In addition, the mitral valve may become impaired in its function as a result of bacterial infection or genetic pre-disposition which in turn, narrows the opening and the tissue becomes thickened and inflamed. This affects the effectiveness of the left atrium/left ventricle coordination and is known as "mitral stenosis".

A mitral valve surgeon will assess you as to whether your condition warrants surgical intervention - surgery is a medical last resort and mitral valve conditions may not need medical intervention to begin with or surgery may not be required because of other medical options that are available to control the condition and your symptoms. Where mitral valve surgery is required, this may take several forms but the success rate is extremely high for the procedures and it has long-lived success in terms of preventing recurrence of mitral valve disease for many years after the operation.

The mitral valve itself forms a connection between the left atrium and left ventricle which is opened to allow blood to pass through to the ventricle but closes when the ventricle contracts to expel the blood from the heart and around your body. The mitral valve may become narrow and thickened (known as mitral stenosis) or the parachute-like leaflets which deploy to closer the valve may not fit snugly against the valve opening and so allow backflow of blood (mitral regurgitation).

There are a number of reasons why the mitral valve may become diseased or ineffective but typically it is because of bacterial infection, cardiac disease or hereditary factors causing the sufferer to be predisposed to the condition. A mitral valve surgeon may operate in a number of ways using traditional open-heart surgery or minimally invasive "keyhole" surgery to repair the tissues and structures of the valve. Fortunately, the procedures involved have a very high success rate (high-90%'s) and are also highly successful in preventing recurrence of mitral valve issues for many years post-operation.

Finding the right doctor for mitral valve repair or Maze procedure is crucial. Visit the specialist at www.cvtsa.com

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