MVPThursday, February 07, 2008
Astuka wishes everyone a Happy Chinese New Year!
When one talks about CNY, several chinese proverbs come into mind. These include gong xi fa cai, nian nian you yu, xin xiang shi chen and wan shi ru yi.
Of course, there is also my personal fav: shen ti jian kang. On a sidenote, I just understood my medical condition recently, which is mitral valve prolapse with moderate mitral valve regurgitation. For those of you who are interested to know more, here is some information provided by
MayoClinicMitral valve prolapse (MVP, but dont mistake it as Most Valued Player) is a common heart disorder. It occurs when the valve between your heart's left upper chamber (left atrium) and the left lower chamber (left ventricle) doesn't close properly. When the left ventricle contracts, the valve's leaflets bulge (prolapse) upward or back into the atrium.
In most people, mitral valve prolapse is harmless and doesn't require treatment or changes in lifestyle. In some people with mitral valve prolapse, however, the progression of the disease requires treatment.
Symptoms can vary widely from one person to another. They tend to be mild, develop gradually and may include:
* A racing or irregular heartbeat (arrhythmia)
* Dizziness, lightheadedness
* Difficulty breathing or shortness of breath, often when lying flat or during physical exertion
* Fatigue
* Chest pain that's not associated with a heart attack or coronary artery disease
Another name for mitral valve prolapse is click-murmur syndrome. When a doctor listens to your heart using a stethoscope, he or she may hear a clicking sound as the valve's leaflets billow out, followed by a murmur resulting from blood flowing back into the atrium.
Most people with mitral valve prolapse lead normal, productive and symptom-free lives. Doctors generally won't recommend restrictions on your lifestyle or any limitations on your personal exercise or dietary program.
However, MVP may lead to complications such as Mitral valve regurgitation— a condition in which the valve is particularly leaky and allows excessive blood back into the left atrium. Having high blood pressure or being overweight or obese increases your risk of mitral valve regurgitation. If the regurgitation is severe, surgery may be recommended to repair or even replace the valve in order to prevent the development of complications, such as heart failure.
OK, that's about it.
This will probably save me some time, when the need to explain my PES E status arrive.
