Cardiologist Questions Heart Valve Diseases

Can heart valve defects cause heart attacks?

I have a heart valve defect and I had a heart attack very recently. Can this defect cause heart attacks?

1 Answer

Severe aortic valve stenosis can cause "heart attacks" using the popular (non medical) vernacular. Professionally, a heart attack at least requires evidence of heart muscle damage, usually an elevated troponin level, along with other clinical indicators including an abnormal EKG, chest pain etc. However there is a long list of fals +ve troponin elevation that has to be sorted out.