Valvular heart disease is commonly caused by damage to the heart muscle as a result of rheumatic fever or a congenital abnormality. In older persons, the heart valves can become calcified as part of the aging process, thus become narrowed and stiff, or in some cases, incompetent so that they leak blood back into the atria. Valvular heart problems can be corrected surgically, by direct repair of the valve, replacement of the damaged valve with an artificial valve, or by a nonsurgical technique called balloon valvuloplasty. Patients with valvular heart disease are also at risk for bacterial endocarditis.
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