Adam’s Heart Valve Surgery Blog

Blog Topics: Bicuspid Aortic Valve Pictures; Normal Aortic Valve Pictures; Calcified Aortic Valve Pictures

So, I just received an email asking, “Do you have any pictures of a bicuspid aortic valve?”

Well, considering I had a bicuspid aortic valve for the first 33 years of my life, I definitely researched and located pictures of bicuspid aortic valves for my book.

As you can see below, the aortic valve on the left is normal - the valve has three leaflets and three cusps.

The valve on the right, however, is a bicuspid aortic valve. As you look at the diagram, you will note that the bicuspid heart valve only has two leaflets and two cusps.

This can become very problematic if the valve calcifies and becomes diseased with the condition known as aortic stenosis.

Here is a picture of a calcified aortic valve:

Picture Of Calcified Bicuspid Aortic Valve

Well. I hope that wasn’t too graphic for you. Those are some pictures of normal aortic valve, bicuspid aortic valves and calcified aortic valves.

Keep on tickin!

Adam

Adam Pick is the author of The Patient’s Guide To Heart Valve Surgery, a unique book which integrates the clinical facts of heart valve surgery with the personal experiences of an actual heart valve surgery patient. This special book was designed to minimize stress and enhance the patient’s recovery. To learn more about Adam’s heart valve surgery book, click here.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 29th, 2007 at 9:34 am and is filed under Pictures, Diagnosis. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site. Print This Post | EMail This Post.