Sudden cardiac arrest and coexisting mitral valve prolapse: a case report and literature review

The aetiology of sudden cardiac arrest can often be identified to underlying cardiac pathology. Mitral valve prolapse is a relatively common valvular pathology with symptoms manifesting with increasing severity of mitral regurgitation (MR). It is unusual for severe MR to be present without symptoms,...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Mohamed Ahmed, Ashraf Roshdy, Rajan Sharma, Nick Fletcher
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2016-05-01
Series:Echo Research and Practice
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.echorespract.com/content/3/1/D1.full
Description
Summary:The aetiology of sudden cardiac arrest can often be identified to underlying cardiac pathology. Mitral valve prolapse is a relatively common valvular pathology with symptoms manifesting with increasing severity of mitral regurgitation (MR). It is unusual for severe MR to be present without symptoms, and there is growing evidence that this subset of patients may be at increased risk of sudden cardiac arrest or death. The difficulty lies in identifying those patients at risk and applying measures that are appropriate to halting progression to cardiac arrest. This article examines the association of mitral valve prolapse with cardiac arrests, the underlying pathophysiological process and the strategies for identifying those at risk.
ISSN:2055-0464
2055-0464