The normal human heart has four main valves: the mitral valve, tricuspid valve, aortic valve and pulmonary valve. They open to allow blood to flow through, and close to prevent blood from flowing backwards, so that blood circulates normally throughout the body. Heart valve problems generally refer to problems with the opening and closing of the heart valves, such as opening wide enough (i.e., “heart valve stenosis”), or closing does not completely close the letter, leaving a gap (i.e., “incomplete closure of the heart valves”). The causes can be divided into two categories: congenital and acquired. For example, in some patients, the aortic valve has only two lobes, one less than normal, and as a result, the aortic valve can only open a little, affecting blood flow. Acquired heart valve diseases can be broadly classified into three categories: infection, degeneration and other disease triggers. 1, bacterial infection: bacteria may reach the heart through the blood and erode the heart valve, causing damage to the heart valve tissue. There are two types of people who are more susceptible to bacterial infections: the first is drug users who share syringes, and the second is patients with small problems with the heart valve itself (such as the heart valve is already thicker or even starting to calcify). 2, degeneration: As people age, many people’s heart valves will degenerate, most commonly in the aortic valve. There are also a small number of patients suffering from some genetic diseases, such as Marfan’s Disease (Marfan’s Disease), so that the early degeneration of the heart valve. 3.Other diseases: Other diseases mainly refer to rheumatic heart disease. Streptococcus, which causes rheumatic heart disease, can cause inflammation of the throat, and a small percentage of patients will have an abnormal immune response – the body will have abnormal antibodies to destroy the heart valve tissue, such as causing mitral valve incomplete closure or mitral valve stenosis. Some patients have no obvious symptoms, while others have the following symptoms due to poor circulation: 1) poor health and fatigue; 2) lungs may be congested, making breathing difficult; 3) swelling of the face, hands, feet, or other parts of the body; 4) swelling of the abdomen, as the liver may be enlarged; 5) irregular heartbeat, sometimes suddenly accelerating. Diagnosis The doctor will first refer to the patient’s medical history and ask for signs and symptoms, and then listen to the patient’s heart for murmurs. The patient may then be advised to undergo an ultrasound, MRI and cardiac catheterization. If the heart valve defect is not severe, regular checkups are sufficient and no medication or surgery is necessary. Other patients need to rely on medication or surgery: 1.Medication is mainly used for older patients who do not want to undergo surgery. The doctor will prescribe medication depending on the condition, such as diuretics to reduce edema, or medication to reduce blood backflow so that the load on the heart does not increase. 2.Surgery Surgery can be divided into three categories. The first type is to replace the faulty part of the heart with an artificial heart valve. The current artificial heart valve is made of two types of materials, respectively, porcine heart valve and metal heart valve. Porcine heart valves last about five to six years or more, and some porcine heart valves can function normally for ten years. Metal heart valves last longer, but patients with metal heart valves need to take “blood thinning medication” so that the blood does not clot on the metal heart valve. The second type of surgery is heart valve repair. Depending on the patient’s condition, the surgeon will make an “incision” to correct the problem of a narrow or incomplete heart valve. The third type of surgery is a catheter-based procedure. This type of surgery involves simply making a small incision in one of the patient’s blood vessels (such as the thigh) and extending a catheter from that point into the heart, through which a balloon-like instrument is used to enlarge the narrowed heart valve. It is difficult to prevent congenital heart valve disease, but the following things can be noted to prevent acquired heart valve disease: 1, pay attention to environmental hygiene to avoid contracting rheumatic heart disease; 2, if you know you have a small heart valve problem, you should notify your doctor when you remove your teeth or have other surgery to reduce the chance of bacteria entering.