hi about 15 years ago i was getting a lot of palpatations and missed heart beats every day i had ecg then echocardiogram,doc said i had a droopy valve and was born with it,he said he could treat me but why should he becouse i smoked,he told me to go home and stop smoking,to day, 15 years later i come across mitral valve prolaps,is this what i have,and i have read that people with this condition should use antibiotics when having dental treatment is this true,if so why diddnt my doc tell me this,i still get palpatations but not as bad as i used to,:)

Hi moommin,

A malformed (congenital) heart valve leaflet can cause some leakage (murmur), and often is not serious. Droopy (not a medical term) could be a prolapse of the leaflet/leaflets.

For may years, it has been advised to take antibiotics before dental or surgical procedures if one has a valve disorder. Recently the American Academy of Cardiology (AAC) issued guidelines to physicians, dentists and surgeons that procedure is no longer necessary based on their findings. There are exceptions and your doctor should be aware...If it were unsafe not to take antibiotics for the classified group, it would be necessary to take an antibiotic everytime the patient vigorously brushed their teeth.:eek: :dizzy:

hi ken thanks for your reply,i will go easy on my teeth shirley