degenerative mitral valve

[dls654]

I am 60 yrs. old and have palpitations at night. I had a normal stress echo except for "degenerative mitral valve."
and mild to moderate tricuspid regurgitation.What do these things mean?

[lvhguy]

You have a normal echocardiogram.
No mitral leaflet thickening with trace/mild mitral regurgitation is not dangerous in the least.

And yes mild to moderate tricuspid regurgitation is very common, not as common as mild tricuspid regurgitation but so what? It doesnt affect your health whatsoever and is always ignored by physicians, why? Because it doesnt mean a thing

Physiological is the same as trace, mild is the same as mild which is a bit more but also a common and normal finding. These valves werent made in a factory they all leak a little bit, all of them and they can be trace one day and mild the next day due to loading conditions, blood pressure etc...

Bottom line, as hard as you are trying to find something abnormal with your test, the test results are quite normal so stop freaking out about it.
Thickened leaflets and trivial regurgitation dont mean anyting of consequence

[dls654]

Thank you so much Kenneth and IVhguy,
I DO HAVE  trace to mild regurgitation with the mild mitral leaf thickening,so is that more dangerous?I have read that tricuspid mild to moderate regurgitation is unusual, but you are saying it is common?
I am 60 yrs. old and my echocardiogram 4 months ago showed NOTHING but "physiological regurgitation" in the mitral,tricuspid and pulmonic valves.

I am nervous because I have been sick for 2 years and have some mild facial flushing and mild anemia. One dr. said it could be Carcinoid (which I know can cause tricuspid regurgitation) but the other expert said he doesn't think its Carcinoid. We have been searching for what is wrong with me. So, questions:
Is mild to moderate tricuspid regurgitation  common or not???????
Is physiological regurgitation the same as trace to mild regurgitation,which is what they now say I have in my mitral (with mild  thickening in mitral leaflet) and pulmonic valve?
Are these findings common at 60?
My dr didn't say anything about MVP...in fact he said electrocardiogram was all okay?????
Thanks so much for your feedback. I am new to all this.

[lvhguy]

You most likely have myxomatous degeneration of your mitral valve which just means its thickened and can occur with or without a leak (regurgitation) and with or without prolapse which is associated with a leak.
I would assume they wouldve noted that you had mitral regurgitation with it as they noted you had mild to moderate tricuspid regurgitation.

So if you dont have mitral regurgitation then the findings dont mean anything, its just a way to describe the appearance of your mitral valve. The tricuspid regurgitation is normal and occurs in most people as the right side of the heart where that valve lives is under low pressure and leaks in 9 out of 10 people.
People tolerate severe leakage of the tricuspid valve and you will easy tolerate a mild/moderate leakage requiring on your part and no treatment.

I know degenerative sounds scary but is most often benign if they are describing myxomatous degeneration, particularly if they did not mention accompanying mitral regurgitation. you can google that as well to find out more

[kenkeith]

I'm not a doctor, but I have under graduate studies in biology, anatomy and medical claims review with health insurance, field insurance investigater for a while in my younger days,  and a little more than 6 years of recent medical research and answering cardio/vascular questions.  

When there is serious valve regurgitation (back flow of blood into the upper chamber rather than into circulation) there often is shortness of breath, fatigue, chest pains, etc. and may require intervention. I have moderate to severe mitral valve regurgitation, but have pretty good tolerance for exertion and have been putting off an operation...I will "bite the bullet" probably within a year.

Mild thickening of the mitral valve leaflets would be an underlying cause for not completely closing the valves opening and preventing backflow.  As a person ages there may be some calcium buildup on the leaflets.  Your tricuspid may have some buildup of plaque as well.  

Treatment would be to help avoid any further calcification with diet, exercise, and possible medication to help prevent the heart from workload stress by lowering the system's demand for blood/oxygen and/or increase oxygenated blood flow...if needed.
Hope this helps give you a perspective, and your valve condition may be part of the aging process and not anything that requires intervention.  Take care

[dls654]

Kenneth-Thank you so much for your response. Are you a dr.?

Does anyone have mild to moderate tricuspid regurgitation? If so, could you tell me your sypmtoms and if you are on medication for it.
Also, my mitral valve leaflets showed mild thickening? What does that mean? Thank you so much.

[kenkeith]

QUOTE: I am 60 yrs. old and have palpitations at night. I had a normal stress echo except for "degenerative mitral valve."
and mild to moderate tricuspid regurgitation.What do these things mean?
___________________________

For a perspective degenerative mitral valve is the valve that separates the leftside upper and lower chambers and the tricuspid valve separates upper and lower rightside chambers. Regurgitation indicates the valve leaflets do not close properly and blood flows back into the upper chamber rather than pumped out into the system.

Mild to moderate tricuspid regurgitation may not be medically significant, but if the mitral valve regurgitation is significant that could cause palpitations.

Thanks for your question, and if you have any followup questions you are welcome to respond.  Take care.

[kitonthemoon]

hi....
I'm not sure exactly what they mean, but WebMD, and Merck Manual, or Mayo Clinic sites could give you good answers.  
Hugs