Valvular Heart Disease
There are 4 valves that control the flow of blood within the heart. On the left side of the heart are the mitral and aortic valves and on the right side are the tricuspid and pulmonary valves. There are several conditions that can affect heart valves. They can become thickened and narrowed so that blood can no longer flow through them easily (called stenosis). They can also fail to close properly allowing blood to flow back in the wrong direction (called regurgitation).