Heart valve disorders may cause a variety of symptoms, including: 

• chest pain (angina)
  
• irregular heartbeats
  
• shortness of breath
  
• swelling of the lower extremities (feet, ankles, hands and wrists).
  

Diagnosis

The signs of a heart valve disorder can often be heard through a stethoscope. Your doctor may also order additional tests, including chest x-ray, electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) or echocardiogram.

Treatment

The best treatment for you will depend on your age, your general health and the severity of your heart condition. Some heart valve problems respond well to lifestyle changes and medications.

When medical management is not enough to manage your heart valve condition, your heart specialist may recommend a valve repair or replacement. It may be possible to surgically correct defects in the valve. However, if the heart valves are too badly damaged to be successfully repaired, valve replacement is an option. Replacement heart valves may be either mechanical (metal and plastic) or bioprosthetic (from human donors or animals).

Open heart valve surgery

Under most circumstances, the best option for valve repair or replacement is to use open heart valve surgery. It involves opening the chest cavity to reach the heart valves. A cardio-pulmonary bypass machine pumps blood through the body while the heart valve is being repaired or replaced.

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI)

Open heart surgery may be considered too risky for people who are very ill or who have other medical problems. In this case, transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) may be recommended.