No longer an open-heart surgery, heart valve repair and replacement uses minimally invasive procedures with small incisions, less pain and shorter hospital stays.
Your heart has four valves. Normally, these valves open to let blood flow through or out of your heart, then shut to keep it from flowing backward. When they don’t work properly, we call it heart valve disease or valvular heart disease, and it can make your heart work harder and affect its ability to pump blood. You can be born with heart valve disease or develop it as a result of infection or aging.
INTEGRIS Health physicians, cardiologists and specialists have extensive experience in diagnosing and treating heart valve disease, and your doctor may decide the diseased valve(s) needs to be surgically repaired or replaced. This may be done using a ring to support your valve, or the entire valve may be removed and replaced by an artificial valve.
Artificial valves may be mechanical (made of metal or plastic) or tissue (made from animal valves or human valves taken from cadavers). This used to involve open-heart surgery, but newer, less invasive techniques have been developed in which the incision is much smaller. This often means you’ll experience less pain after the operation as well as shorter hospital stays.
You can rest assured that our multidisciplinary team will collaborate closely to develop an optimal, personalized treatment plan for you.
If you are over the age of 40, check the risk factors. Schedule a Heart Scan today.
We strive to provide you with care that’s not only the best available, but care that’s convenient and as close to home as possible. These INTEGRIS Health locations near you are ready to help.
