Heart valve disease occurs when a valve doesn't work right. A valve may not open all the way. Or, a valve may have problems closing. If this happens, blood doesn't move through the heart's chambers the way it should.

 

 

Who Needs Heart Surgery?

Heart surgery is used to treat people who have certain heart diseases and conditions. If other treatments - such as lifestyle changes, medicines, and medical procedures - haven't worked or can't be used, heart surgery may be an option.

 

Heart surgery is used to treat heart failure and coronary heart disease. It's also used to fix heart valves that don't work right, to control heart rhythms, and to replace a damaged heart with a healthy one.

 

Specialists Involved

Your primary care doctor, a cardiologist, and a cardiothoracic surgeon will work with you to decide whether you need heart surgery.

 

A cardiologist specializes in diagnosing and treating heart problems. A cardiothoracic surgeon specializes in surgery on the heart and lungs.

 

These doctors will talk with you and do tests to learn about your general health and your heart problem. They'll discuss test results with you, and you'll help make decisions about the surgery.

 

Medical Evaluation

Your doctors will talk with you about:

 

You also may have blood tests, such as a complete blood count, a lipoprotein panel (cholesterol test), and other tests as needed.

 

Diagnostic Tests

Diagnostic tests are done to find out more about your heart problem and your general health. This helps your doctors decide whether you need heart surgery, what type of surgery you need, and when to do it.

 

EKG (Electrocardiogram)

An EKG is a simple, painless test that records the heart's electrical activity. This test is used to help detect and locate the source of heart problems.

 

A technician attaches sticky patches, called electrodes, to the skin of your chest, arms, and legs.

 

The electrodes are attached with wires to a machine that records your heart's electrical signals.

 

An EKG shows how fast your heart is beating and whether its rhythm is steady or irregular. An EKG also shows where in your heart the electrical activity starts, and whether it's traveling through your heart in a normal way.

 

Stress Test

Some heart problems are easier to diagnose when your heart is working hard and beating fast.

 

During stress testing, you exercise to make your heart work hard and beat fast.

 

As part of the test, your blood pressure is checked and an EKG is done. Other heart tests also may be done.

 

Echocardiography

Echocardiography is a painless, noninvasive test. "Noninvasive" means that no surgery is done and no instruments are inserted into your body.

 

This test uses sound waves to create a moving picture of your heart. Echocardiography shows the size and shape of your heart and how well your heart chambers and valves are working.

 

The test also can show areas of poor blood flow to your heart, areas of heart muscle that aren't working properly, and previous injury to your heart muscle caused by poor blood flow.

 

Coronary Angiography

Coronary angiography uses contrast dye to make the inside of your coronary arteries visible on an x-ray image. This test shows the location and severity of blockages in the blood vessels.

 

To get the dye to your coronary arteries, a procedure called cardiac catheterization is used. Cardiologists usually do cardiac catheterizations in a hospital. You're awake during the procedure, and it usually causes little to no pain.

 

During this procedure, a thin, flexible tube called a catheter is passed through an artery in your arm, groin, or neck and threaded to your heart. The dye is injected into your bloodstream through the tip of the catheter.

 

Special x rays are taken while the dye is flowing through your coronary arteries.

 

Aortogram

An aortogram is an angiogram of the aorta. The aorta is the main artery that carries blood from your heart to your body. An aortogram may show the location and size of an aortic aneurysm.

 

Chest X Ray

A chest x ray provides a picture of the organs and structures inside your chest, including the heart, lungs, and blood vessels.

 

This test gives your doctor information about the size and shape of your heart. A chest x ray also shows the position and shape of the large arteries around your heart.

 

Cardiac Computed Tomography Scan

A cardiac computed tomography scan, or cardiac CT scan, is a painless test that uses an x-ray machine to take clear, detailed pictures of the heart.

 

Sometimes an iodine-based dye is injected into one of your veins during the scan. The contrast dye travels through your blood vessels, which helps highlight them on the x-ray pictures.

 

A cardiac CT scan can show whether plaque is narrowing your coronary arteries or whether you have an aneurysm. A CT scan also can find problems with the heart's function and valves.

 

Cardiac Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a safe, noninvasive test that uses magnets and radio waves to create pictures of your organs and tissues.

 

Cardiac MRI uses a computer to create images of your heart as it's beating. The computer makes both still and moving pictures of your heart and major blood vessels.

 

Cardiac MRI shows the structure and function of your heart. This test can find aneurysms and determine their size and exact location.

 

 

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