- With Mayo Clinic cardiologist
Martha Grogan, M.D.
read biographyclose windowBiography of
Martha Grogan, M.D.
Martha Grogan, M.D.
Dr. Martha Grogan is board-certified in internal medicine and cardiovascular diseases. She is a native of Cincinnati, Ohio, and received her medical degree from Northwestern University Medical School. Dr. Grogan has been on staff at Mayo Clinic since 1995 and is a consultant in the Division of Cardiovascular Diseases and is an assistant professor of medicine at Mayo Medical School.
Dr. Grogan is a noninvasive cardiologist specializing in heart failure, adult congenital heart disease and echocardiography. She has witnessed firsthand the importance of patient education in the treatment of diseases such as congestive heart failure and is excited about the tremendous educational opportunities now available through the Internet.
Mayo Clinic Health Manager
Get free personalized health guidance for you and your family.
Get Started
About our e-newsletters
- Free e-newsletters
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- We do not share your e-mail address
Housecall, our weekly general-interest e-newsletter, keeps you up to date on a wide variety of health topics with timely, reliable, practical information, recipes, blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts and more. Our biweekly topic-specific e-newsletters also include blogs, questions and answers with Mayo Clinic experts, and other useful information that will help you manage your health.
Housecall Archives
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Question
Mitral valve prolapse: Can it thicken the aorta?
Can mitral valve prolapse cause the aorta to thicken? Perhaps because the heart is working too hard?
Answer
from Martha Grogan, M.D.
Mitral valve prolapse is a common heart disorder that occurs when the valve between the heart's left upper chamber (left atrium) and the left lower chamber (left ventricle) doesn't close properly. Mitral valve prolapse sometimes leads to mitral valve regurgitation — a condition in which blood leaks backward into the left atrium.
The aorta is the large blood vessel that branches off the heart to deliver oxygen-rich blood to the body. Mitral valve prolapse doesn't cause the aorta to thicken. In some cases, however, abnormalities of the aorta may be present along with mitral valve prolapse. This is especially likely if a person has Marfan syndrome or another connective tissue disorder.
Mitral valve prolapse is often harmless. Most people who have mitral valve prolapse don't require treatment. If leakage is severe, however, the mitral valve may need to be repaired or replaced.
- Grogan M (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Oct. 3, 2008.
- Sorrentino MJ. Definition and diagnosis of mitral valve prolapse. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Oct. 6, 2008.
- Gaasch WH. Overview of the management of chronic mitral regurgitation. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed Oct. 6, 2008.
