Dr. Aklog shares the causes of aortic valve disease/AVD.
There are several causes of aortic valve disease. The most common cause is degeneration or wear and tear of the valve, and that happens really over a long period of time and most commonly presents in older patients, particularly women, starting in the 60s, 70s and 80s. The valve degenerates and becomes thickened and hardened and calcified so that it can’t open properly, causing aortic stenosis or inability of the aortic valve to open well.
Aortic stenosis can also occur in younger age patients from a congenital abnormality that you’re born with where the valve simply just doesn’t open properly from birth, an abnormality from birth. The aortic valve can also be involved with infection like any other valve in the body, and that can cause damage to the valve and cause more commonly leakage of the valve.
Finally, another common cause of a leaky aortic valve is an aneurysm or dilated portion of the aorta, just above the valve, which causes the valve to stretch apart and prevents it from forming a proper seal.
About Dr. Aklog, M.D.:
Dr. Lishan Aklog is the current Director and Chief of Cardiovascular Surgery at The Heart and Lung Institute of St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center in Phoenix, Arizona and Director of EmpowHer's Medical Advisory Board. Specializing in adult cardiac care, he graduated from Harvard College followed by Harvard Medical School. Dr. Aklog was a cardiothoracic resident at Brigham and Women’s/Boston Children’s Hospital, an Associate Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York, and completed international fellowships in London, England and Paris, France.
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