Even though mitral valve prolapse is not usually life-threatening, however some people may require treatment and a complete change of lifestyle. Mitral valve prolapse, or MVP, is defined as a valvular heart disorder. Where one or both mitral …show more content…
When people start to feel symptoms of mitral valve prolapse they usually get an irregular heartbeat, fatigue, chest pains, anxiety, and migraine headaches. Fatigue is the most frequent complaint. Patients with mitral valve prolapse may have imbalances in their autonomic nervous system, which controls the heart rate and breathing. Such imbalances may cause insufficient blood oxygen delivery to the working muscles during exercise, thus causing fatigue. Palpitations are sensations of a rapid or irregular heartbeat. Most people say they feel as if their heart is doing flips inside their chest. In most patients with mitral valve, prolapse palpitations are harmless, but in very rare cases, serious heart rhythm abnormalities may underlie palpitations and more testing should be done. Chest pain, anxiety, panic attacks and depression may be associated with mitral valve prolapse, but many researchers believe these symptoms to be related to imbalances of the autonomic nervous system.
Many people who don’t have symptoms find out they have mitral valve prolapse during a general physical exam. When a doctor examines a patient with a stethoscope, a clicking sound is heard soon after the ventricle begins to contract. If there is associated leakage of blood through the abnormal valve opening a “whooshing” sound can be heard immediately following the clicking sound. This is a heart