Causes of Valvular Heart Disease

Congenital

A person has been born with a congenital valve defect or the valve may have been affected by early surgery for a congenital heart abnormality.

Acquired

Usually due to infection. In the past this was usually due to rheumatic fever but this has been considerably reduced in the developed world because of the widespread use of antibiotics. However, it is still a main cause of valve damage in developing countries.

More rarely, infections from the bloodstream can affect the inner lining of the heart, notably the valves. This condition is called Endocarditis and usually worsens valves that are already damaged. This also can affect intravenous drug users because of introducing infection directly into the bloodstream. Endocarditis rarely occurs in healthy people.

Degenerative

With age, valves in the heart tend to stiffen and calcify, and therefore become stenotic. A heart attack may damage the supporting muscles of a valve (papillary muscles), which would allow the valve to swing backwards and therefore cause incompetence.