Mitral Valve Prolapse

Mitral Valve Prolapse is a valvular heart disease characterized by the displacement of an abnormally thickened mitral valve leaflet into the left atrium during systole. The diagnosis of MVP depends upon echocardiography, which uses ultrasound to visualize the mitral valve. MVP may occur with greater frequency in individuals with Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, Marfan syndrome or polycystic kidney disease. Other risk factors may include also Graves disease. Patients with classic mitral valve prolapse have excess connective tissue that thickens the spongiosa and separates collagen bundles in the fibrosa. This is due to an excess of dermatan sulfate, a glycosaminoglycan. This weakens the leaflets and adjacent tissue, resulting in increased leaflet area and elongation of the chordae tendineae. Elongation of the chordae tendineae often causes rupture, commonly to the chordae attached to the posterior leaflet. Advanced lesions—also commonly involving the posterior leaflet—lead to leaflet folding, inversion, and displacement toward the left atrium. Video by Maged Al Ali MD.