Grade 2 - 3 MR - what does it mean?

[ManiSham]

hi everyone,

need your help you clarify what is stated in my echo,

I went for my review today and after the Echo my Cardiologist said that my Mitral valve is causing some problems and started me on Cardece 1.25mg.

My echo report states Grade 2 - 3 MR , eccentric jet - can someone tell me what this is please?

I was asked to come back in three months, I couldn't talk with the dr to ask questions since it was a busy day after the holidays.

This is the first time there has been an issue with my heart after my AVR surgery nine years ago, bummer!

Thank you in advance
ManiSham

 

[Midpack]

Hi!

MR means mitral regurgitation. Blood is supposed to flow in a unique direction inside your heart. When the mitral valve fails to close properly, some amount of blood returns to the left atrium instead of leaving the left ventricle through the aorta. The regurgitation degree is evaluated, and 2/3 means moderate/moderate-to-severe. Jet eccentricity refers to the direction of the jet blood that goes back into the atrium.

There are some important questions you should ask:
1- Why is your mitral valve leaking? For instance, an usual cause, is a mitral valve prolapse.
2- Is your left ventricle function preserved or affected by the regurgitation? Key values to look are Ejection Fraction and "Left ventricle end of systolic diameter".
3- Are you having any typical symptoms of valve problems? (fatigue, shortness of breath, palpitations, etc.)

For the moment, you should relax. Your valve will be periodically monitored (probably twice a year), and only if things get really bad surgery will be considered.

Hope this helps.

 

[ManiSham]

Thank you for your response Midpack.

I will ask my doctor those questions, since I had endocarditis I assume this could have triggered it because when I checked my previous echo reports, they showed a Grade 1 MR so maybe it was there for sometime.

I have zero symptoms, I never had any problems even with my AV.

I'm trying to relax but it's difficult since I don't want to go through major health issues again.