When the heart valve degenerates

FOR the elderly who suffer from shortness of breath, chest pain or fainting spells, the underlying cause of the symptoms may not always be blockage of the heart arteries but could be disease of the heart valves.

When the left lower chamber of the heart contracts, blood is pumped out of the heart through the aortic valve which then opens to allow blood to flow into the aorta which is the main arterial vessel providing blood supply to the entire body.

Subsequently, the left lower heart chamber relaxes and the aortic valve closes, preventing blood in the aorta from flowing backwards into the heart chambers.

With increasing longevity, degeneration of the aortic valve becomes increasingly common. Over time, the aortic valve thickens and often becomes calcified, thereby reducing the size of the v…