The medical term that refers to multiple health conditions that negatively affect your heart’s valves, walls, chambers, or muscles is called structural heart disease. For example, cardiomyopathy, congenital heart disease, and heart valve disease. While structural heart diseases can be present at birth (congenital), they may also develop later in life. Furthermore, not everyone who develops a structural heart disease needs treatment, but your doctor should monitor your heart regularly. However, those who need treatment and do not get it may experience more serious health conditions over time.
Types of Structural Heart Disease
The primary types include:
- Heart valve disease – In such cases, people have problems with any of the 4 valves that open and close to maintain the blood flow in the correct direction.
- Cardiomyopathy – This condition impacts the heart muscle.
- Congenital heart disease – These heart problems often appear during pregnancy and are present at birth.
How Common is Structural Heart Disease?
The most common type of structural heart disease is heart valve disease, and it affects approximately 2.5% of all people in the U.S. It includes valvular regurgitation (leaking) or stenosis (narrowing). Moreover, one of the most common heart valve diseases is mitral valve regurgitation. However, more than 2 million people in the United States have a leaky heart valve.
Additionally, 1.4 million adults and 1 million children have a congenital heart disease in the U.S. The most common type of birth defect in the U.S. is congenital heart disease. It affects about 1% of births (roughly 40,000 babies) every year.
About 1 in 500 people in the United States have cardiomyopathy. It often occurs due to multiple causes, including coronary artery disease, a complication of viral infections, and environmental exposures (such as misuse of alcoholic drinks).
Symptoms
Structural heart diseases do not always cause symptoms, but when they do, you may experience the following symptoms. Examples include:
- Arrhythmia (irregular heart rhythm)
- Kidney dysfunction
- Dyspnea (shortness of breath)
- Edema (fluid buildup in the abdomen, ankles, or feet)
- Extreme tiredness (fatigue)
- Syncope (dizziness, lightheadedness, or fainting)
- Chest tightness, pressure, or pain
- Hypertension (high blood pressure)
If any of the previous symptoms occur, immediately contact your healthcare professional.
Causes
When heart problems are present at birth, they are often caused by DNA mutations (changes) that occur during pregnancy. Sometimes, children may get abnormal genes from their biological parents. Check below some causes of structural heart diseases that occur later in life:
- Aortic aneurysm
- Misuse of alcoholic beverages or recreational drugs
- Aging (it may cause Calcium deposits on the heart valves)
- Autoimmune disorders (including rheumatic fever, lupus, and others)
- Cardiovascular diseases
- Myocardial infarction (heart attack)
- Conditions that cause damage to the heart muscle (such as hemochromatosis, amyloidosis, or sarcoidosis)
- Endocarditis
- Endocrine conditions (such as diabetes, thyroid disease, and others)
- Hypertension (high blood pressure)
- Continuous exposure to high-dose radiation
- Marfan syndrome
- Muscle conditions (such as muscular dystrophy)
- Atherosclerosis (plaque buildup in the arteries)
What Are The Possible Complications of Structural Heart Disease?
People with structural heart diseases may also experience some complications, especially if they do not get treatment. Check below some examples:
- Heart failure
- Stroke
- Arrhythmia
- Pulmonary hypertension
- Sudden cardiac arrest
This article does not contain all possible complications of structural heart diseases. However, you can consult with your doctor about ways to reduce the risk or prevent previous complications.
How to Prevent Structural Heart Disease?
There are some tips that may help reduce the risk of your child developing congenital heart disease. For example:
- Talk with your doctor about medicines for chronic health conditions (such as hypertension, diabetes, epilepsy, and others)
- Stop smoking – If you face problems with smoking cessation, discuss it with your doctor.
- Limit or avoid alcohol
- Avoid recreational drugs
- Administer 400 micrograms of folate or folic acid daily
Check below some tips that may help reduce the risk of heart valve disease and cardiomyopathy later in life:
- Perform physical exercises regularly because they help get and maintain a healthy weight
- Adopt a heart-healthy diet
- Limit alcohol intake and avoid recreational drugs
- Manage chronic health conditions (such as thyroid disease)
- Reduce stress
Diagnosis
In some cases, a structural heart disease can be identified during pregnancy by performing a fetal echocardiogram. It helps get pictures of the baby’s heart.
In children and adults, the diagnosis often begins with a physical examination to check for abnormalities linked to the disease and questions about the symptoms and medical history. When doctors suspect a structural heart disease, they may perform some tests to confirm the condition. These include:
- Cardiac catheterization – During this procedure, doctors use a small tube that is inserted into an artery in the groin and then guided to the heart. It helps examine heart valves and test the pressure within the heart chambers.
- Coronary angiogram – This test involves cardiac catheterization and contrast dye to see how blood flows through the heart, arteries, and valves.
- Echocardiogram – This test uses sound waves to produce images of the heart’s chambers and valves.
- Electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) – This is a quick and painless test used to measure the electrical activity of the heart. It often helps identify abnormal heart rhythm.
- Exercise stress test – This test involves walking or running on a treadmill while doctors monitor your heart. It may help get more clues about the disease.
- Holter monitor – This is a device that records the heart’s electrical activity for 24 to 48 hours during daily activities.
- Other imaging tests – In some cases, doctors may also perform a chest X-ray, CT (computed tomography) scans, or cardiac MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scans to look inside the chest for structural issues.
The most common tests used to confirm structural heart diseases are the ECG and echocardiogram.
Treatment
Not everyone who develops a structural heart disease needs treatment, but doctors should monitor the heart throughout one’s lifetime. Check below some treatments often recommended for people with these disorders:
- Medicines
- Minimally invasive procedures to repair or replace a defective valve
- Open-heart surgery – During these procedures, surgeons will open the chest wall to replace the heart valve or perform a heart transplant.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does structural heart disease affect my body?
Structural heart diseases make it difficult for the heart to pump blood to meet the body’s needs. However, blood contains oxygen and other essential nutrients that help the body function properly. When the flow of oxygen-rich blood is reduced or blocked, it usually leads to multiple health problems and symptoms.
What is the most common structural heart disease?
The most common type of this disorder is heart valve disease. Moreover, it affects about 2.5% of the population in the U.S. For example, valvular regurgitation (leaking) or stenosis (narrowing).
Which heart disease cannot be cured?
There are some heart disorders that cannot be cured, but can be treated. These include coronary artery disease, cardiomyopathy, atrial fibrillation, and pulmonary hypertension. To manage previous disorders, doctors often recommend lifestyle changes, medicines, devices, and surgery (sometimes). Ask your healthcare provider if you have any other questions.
