Tricuspid valve disease is damage to a valve in the heart. This valve has three flaps that control the direction and flow of blood from the body to the lungs.
The two main types of this disease are:
Anatomy of the HeartCopyright © Nucleus Medical Media, Inc. |
The valve may not develop the right way in some people. In other people, the disease may be caused by:
Some people may not have symptoms. Others may have:
You will be asked about your symptoms and health history. You may be asked if you have had rheumatic heart disease. A physical exam will be done. It will focus on the heart.
Images may be taken of the heart to confirm the diagnosis. This can be done with an echocardiogram.
Treatment will depend on how severe the damage is. Only severe symptoms may need to be treated. This can be done with:
Tricuspid valve disease itself cannot be prevented. Strep throat can lead to rheumatic fever. Treating the infection early may lower the risk of problems.
American Heart Association
http://www.heart.org
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov
Canadian Cardiovascular Society
http://www.ccs.ca
The College of Family Physicians of Canada
http://www.cfpc.ca
Diseases of the tricuspid valve. Texas Heart Institute website. Available at: https://www.texasheart.org/heart-health/heart-information-center/topics/diseases-of-the-tricuspid-valve. Accessed January 13, 2020.
Nishimura RA, Otto CM, et al. 2014 AHA/ACC Guideline for the Management of Patients With Valvular Heart Disease: A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Practice Guidelines. Circulation. 2014 Jun 10;129(23):e521-643.
Tricuspid valve disease. EBSCO DynaMed website. Available at: https://www.dynamed.com/condition/tricuspid-valve-disease. Updated December 27, 2019. Accessed January 13, 2020.
Last reviewed September 2019 by
EBSCO Medical Review Board
Kari Kassir, MD
Last Updated: 9/9/2020