Mitral Regurgitation Blog

By Adam Pick

Operating Room Insights: The Different “Faces” of Mitral Valve Disease

Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Published: June 10, 2023

Are you ready to go inside the operating room of Dr. Marc Gerdisch, Chief of Cardiac Surgery at Franciscan Health, to learn about the different “faces” of mitral valve disease?

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Mitral Valve Awareness: What is Mitral Valve Disease?

Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Medical Expert: Pavan Atluri, MD, Director of Minimally Invasive and Robotic Cardiac Surgery at Penn Medicine
Published: April 10, 2023

There is a fundamental lack of awareness to mitral valve disease. In addition, mitral valve disease is significantly under-treated. Sadly, mitral valve disease is also deadly.

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“Can Mitral Regurgitation Cause A Stroke?” asks Michael

Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Medical Expert: Michael Acker, MD, Chief of Cardiovascular Surgery at Penn Medicine
Published: March 9, 2023

I just received a very interesting question from Michael about mitral regurgitation and stroke.

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Big News! REPAIR MR Clinical Trial Now Enrolling Patients!

Written By: Adam Pick, Patient Advocate, Author & Website Founder
Page last updated: November 29, 2022

Why is the REPAIR MR Clinical Trial such a big deal for millions of heart disease patients with mitral valve regurgitation?

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After Heart Surgery, Lee Feels Very Grateful!

By Adam Pick on October 2, 2020

When I see a patient picture like this come across my community newsfeed, I stop what I’m doing.

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Surgeon Q&A: What’s The Difference Between Primary & Secondary Mitral Regurgitation?

By Adam Pick on August 17, 2016

At the recent American Association for Thoracic Surgery meeting in Baltimore, I was very lucky to connect with Dr. Vinay Badhwar, the executive chair of the West Virginia University Heart & Vascular Institute. During our chat, we had a very interesting conversation about the differences between primary and secondary mitral regurgitation.

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Ask Me Anything #1: “Does Mitral Regurgitation Cause Tricuspid Regurgitation?”

By Adam Pick on October 8, 2015

You asked the questions! We got the answers! That’s right… We’re ready to start our “Ask Me Anything” video series that was just filmed at the Heart Valve Summit in Chicago.

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Ask Me Anything #3: “How Bad Does My Heart Murmur Have To Be Before It Gets Fixed?” Asks Ruth

By Adam Pick on May 18, 2015

In our third “Ask Me Anything” video from the Mitral Conclave, Dr. Patrick McCarthy, the chief of cardiac surgery at Northwestern Medicine, answers Ruth’s question, “How bad does my mitral valve heart murmur have to be before it gets fixed?”

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Mitral Regurgitation Visualized – For You, Your Family & Friends

By Adam Pick on January 8, 2014

As mitral valve regurgitation is one of the most common forms of heart valve disease, I get a lot of great questions about it. The questions range from “What is leaky mitral regurgitation?” to “What are the causes of mitral valve regurg?” to “Is the disorder dangerous?”

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Surgeon Q&A: Understanding Leaky Heart Valves with Dr. Accola

By Adam Pick on May 24, 2013

One of the most common forms of heart valve disease is regurgitation, a disorder in which blood leaks backward across the patient’s aortic, mitral, pulmonary or tricuspid valve. So you know, my inbox is often filled with questions like, “What is a leaky heart valve?” and “Are leaking valves dangerous?” and “How are leaky valves treated?”

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“Why Is Ankle Swelling A Symptom Of Mitral Regurgitation?” Asks Andrea

By Adam Pick on May 8, 2013

I received a great question from Andrea about the symptoms of heart valve disease. In her note, Andrea writes to me, “Hi Adam, My 81-year old mom is experiencing symptoms due to mitral regurgitation. She is constantly short of breath and has ankle swelling. My question is… Why are her ankles swelling? Will that go away after surgery?”

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Surgeon Q & A: The Critical Facts About Mitral Regurgitation with Dr. Patrick McCarthy

By Adam Pick on March 18, 2013

As many patients in our community have been diagnosed with mitral valve regurgitation, I recently met with Doctor Patrick McCarthy to better understand the important facts about this valvular disorder.

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True or False: A Heart Murmur Is Similar To A Rocky River

By Adam Pick on February 25, 2013

At the recent Society of Thoracic Surgeons conference, I was fortunate to reconnect with Dr. Junaid Khan, MD, the Director of Cardiovascular Services at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Oakland, California. During our discussion, Dr. Khan shared an interesting analogy about heart murmurs that I felt was really helpful for patients.

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“What Symptoms & Echocardiogram Readings Determine Heart Failure?” Asks Jesse

By Adam Pick on January 18, 2013

I just received an interesting email from Jesse regarding mitral regurgitation, heart failure and echocardiograms.

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“Is Mitral Stenosis The Same Thing As A Leaking Heart Valve?” Asks Vicki

By Adam Pick on July 10, 2012

This morning, I received a great email from Vicki which reads, “Hi Adam – Is mitral stenosis the same thing as a leaking heart valve?”

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Trent Viavattene Readies To Remedy Mitral Regurgitation

By Adam Pick on June 15, 2012

I wanted to shine our “Heart Valve Journals Spotlight” on Trent Viavattene, a mitral regurgitation patient from Plano, Texas.

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Trivia Time: Do 20% Of Healthy, Middle-Age Men Have Heart Murmurs?

By Adam Pick on May 30, 2012

I just came across an interesting study published in the Journal of Internal Medicine about men and heart murmurs.

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Mitralign Gets $35 Million For Less Invasive Mitral Regurgitation Treatment

By Adam Pick on May 18, 2012

As we continue to track the new technologies impacting heart valve treatment, I thought you might like to know about an interesting treatment method for mitral regurgitation. The Mitralign device enables physicians to repair a mitral valve using a catheter-based procedure instead of an incision to the sternum or ribs.

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