Open AccessMitral prolapse: An old mysterious entity – The incremental role of multimodality imaging in sports eligibility
Author(s) -
Andreina Carbone,
Antonello D’Andrea,
Giancarlo Scognamiglio,
Raffaella Scarafile,
Gianpaolo Tocci,
Simona Sperlongano,
Francesca Martone,
Juri Radmilovic,
Marianna D’Amato,
Biagio Liccardo,
Marino Scherillo,
Maurizio Galderisi,
Paolo Golino
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
journal of cardiovascular echography
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.255
H-Index - 8
eISSN - 2347-193X
pISSN - 2211-4122
DOI - 10.4103/jcecho.jcecho_42_18
Subject(s) - medicine , cardiology , mitral valve prolapse , mitral regurgitation , atrial fibrillation , heart failure , physical examination , cardiac magnetic resonance imaging , sudden cardiac death , cardiac imaging , mitral valve , radiology , magnetic resonance imaging
Mitral valve prolapse is generally a benign condition characterized by fibromyxomatous changes of the mitral leaflet with displacement into the left atrium and late-systolic regurgitation. Although it is an old clinical entity, it still arouses perplexity in diagnosis and clinical management. Complications, such as mitral regurgitation (MR), atrial fibrillation, congestive heart failure, endocarditis, ventricular arrhythmias, and sudden cardiac death (SCD), have been reported. A large proportion of the overall causes of SCD in young competitive athletes is explained by mitral valve prolapse. Recent studies have shown the fibrosis of the papillary muscles and inferobasal left ventricular wall in mitral valve prolapse, suggesting a possible origin of ventricular fatal arrhythmias. Athletes with mitral valve prolapse and MR should undergo annual evaluations including physical examination, echocardiogram, and exercise stress testing to evaluate the cardiovascular risks of competitive sports and obtain the eligibility. In this setting, multimodality imaging techniques - echocardiography, cardiac magnetic resonance, and cardiac computed tomography - should provide a broad spectrum of information, from diagnosis to clinical management of the major clinical profiles of the disease.