What is the Aortic Valve?

The aortic valve is on the left side of the heart and is an outflow valve. The aortic valve opens to allow blood to leave the major pumping section of the heart and closes to prevent blood from leaking back into this section from the rest of the body.

What is Aortic Valve Disease?

Aortic Valve Disease is damage and dysfunction of the aortic valve. When the aortic valve leaks, the heart has to work harder.

The ventricle must pump more blood with each contraction to produce the same productivity as a normal heart.  The heart can handle this for many months or years especially if the leak develops slowly.  Over time, the heart may begin to fail which produces various symptoms.

What are the common symptoms of Aortic Valve Disease?

• shortness of breath
• chest pain 
• dizziness and/or
• loss of consciousness (passing out).

What causes Aortic Valve Disease?

There are two common causes of Aortic Valve Disease.  A damaged or abnormal aortic valve could have been caused at birth otherwise known as congenital aortic valve disease. The most common congenital abnormality is a bicuspid aortic valve which occurs in 1-2% of people. A bicuspid aortic valve has two sections compared to a normal aortic valve which has three. The other cause is age related. The Aortic Valve could have become damaged over time with age otherwise known as acquired aortic valve disease.  

The Oregon Clinic has divisions that are dedicated to diagnosing and treating Aortic Valve Disease and other diseases and disorders of the heart and lungs.

Take a heart healthy step in the right direction. For more information, please contact one of our divisions that specialize in Thoracic Surgery or search Health Information.

Source:The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. (2010, Feb 01) Aortic Valve. Retrieved from http://www.sts.org/sections/patientinformation/valvesurgery/aorticvalve/