Aging & Health A to Z

Heart Valve Problems

Common Cardiac Tests

Basic Facts & Information

Your heart contains four valves. These tiny bits of tissue keep your blood circulating in one direction through your heart, to your lungs to receive oxygen, and then back to your heart to be pumped out to the rest of your body. 

Through a lifetime of use, one or more of your heart valves might weaken or even stop working properly. Infections, heart attacks and other diseases can damage your heart valves. When that happens, blood can pool in one of your heart chambers, or might leak through the valve and flow in the wrong direction. These changes can make your heart work harder and affect its ability to pump blood.

Updated: March 2012
Posted:  March 2012