Heart Valve Abnormality Linked to Increased Risk of Dangerous Heart Rhythm Disorder: Study

New York: People with a specific heart valve abnormality known as Mitral Annular Disjunction (MAD) may face a significantly higher risk of developing life-threatening heart rhythm disorders, according to a new study conducted by researchers at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. Published in the European Heart Journal, the study highlights a strong association between MAD and the occurrence of ventricular arrhythmias—severe disturbances in the heart’s rhythm that can potentially lead to cardiac arrest.

MAD is frequently found in patients with mitral valve prolapse, a heart condition that affects approximately 2.5% of the global population. This condition causes the mitral valve to leak, resulting in the backward flow of blood in the heart. Patients often experience symptoms such as palpitations and shortness of breath. Over time, this can progress to heart failure and arrhythmias.

The Swedish research team studied 599 patients with mitral valve prolapse who underwent heart surgery at Karolinska University Hospital between 2010 and 2022. The findings revealed that individuals with MAD were more likely to be women and, on average, were eight years younger than those without MAD. Moreover, these patients had more extensive mitral valve disease at the time of surgery.

Even after successful corrective surgery for the valve defect, patients with MAD were found to have more than a threefold increased risk of developing ventricular arrhythmias over a five-year follow-up period compared to patients without preoperative MAD. This suggests that MAD may have lasting effects on the heart, potentially altering the heart muscle over time or indicating the presence of a broader, underlying cardiomyopathy.

“These findings stress the importance of long-term cardiac monitoring in patients with MAD—even after successful surgical intervention,” said Associate Professor Bahira Shahim from the Department of Medicine, Solna, at Karolinska Institutet.

The study authors noted that further research is needed to explore whether MAD causes permanent structural changes in the heart or serves as a marker for deeper heart muscle disorders, underlining the need for personalized follow-up strategies in affected patients.