heart and blood vessel disorders
Tricuspid Regurgitation
Introduction
Tricuspid regurgitation is leakage of blood backward through the tricuspid valve each time the right ventricle contracts. Tricuspid regurgitation is caused by disorders that enlarge the right ventricle. Symptoms are vague, such as weakness and fatigue. Doctors make the diagnosis because of physical examination findings, and they use echocardiography to confirm the diagnosis. The underlying disorder is treated. (See also Overview of Heart Valve Disorders and the video The tricuspid valve is in the opening between the right atrium and the right ventricle. The tricuspid valve opens to allow blood from the right atrium to fill the right ventricle and closes to keep blood from flowing back into the right atrium as the right ventricle contracts to pump blood into the lungs. When the tricuspid valve does not close completely, some blood leaks backward into the right atrium, termed regurgitation. (See also the video.) Blood leaking backward into the right atrium increases the volume of blood there and results in less blood being pumped through the heart and to the body. As a result, the right atrium enlarges, and blood pressure increases in the right atrium and the large veins that enter it from the body. All of these changes can sometimes contribute to symptoms of Heart Failure (HF) . The liver and/or legs may swell because of this increased pressure. An extremely enlarged atrium often beats rapidly in an irregular pattern (a disorder called Atrial Fibrillation and Atrial Flutter ), which reduces the heart's pumping efficiency because the fibrillating atrium is quivering rather than pumping. Consequently, blood does not flow through the atrium briskly, and blood clots may form inside the chamber. If a clot breaks loose (becoming an embolus), it is pumped out of the heart and may block an artery, possibly causing a 