Cardiologist reveals 7 hacks to prevent heart valve disease: ‘Basic annual checkup, even just stethoscope examination…’

Know how you can support your heart health by adopting smarter health habits, from understanding the early signs to lifestyle changes.

Heart valve disease is one of the alarming ailments that requires greater awareness. For those who may be unfamiliar, heart valves are the essential structures in the heart that enable blood flow, especially as it moves in the right direction. When these valves are affected, a person may be at serious risk of complications, as the heart has to work much harder to pump blood efficiently, which can gradually impact overall heart function.

Healthy lifestyle habits ensure your heart health stays well. (Picture credit: Freepik)

HT Lifestyle reached out to Dr Sumanto Mukhopadhyay, a structural heart intervention specialist and senior consultant interventional cardiologist at Apollo Multispeciality Hospital, Kolkata, West Bengal. He altered that heart valve problems are often silent until they become severe.

“In India, millions are affected, either from childhood infections that damaged valves over time, or from ageing,” he remarked. This suggests that a majorportion of heart valve disease does not occur suddenly but develops gradually due toseveral modifiable factors, such as untreated infections, poor lifestyle habits, and delayed diagnosis.

Dr Mukhopadhyay shared these 7 hacks that ensure you stay on top of your health and prevent heart valve disease:

1. Know the early warning signs

Dizziness is one of the symptom.

The first hack is to recognise the early warning signs, as heart valve disease often develops silently and progresses before obvious symptoms appear. In fact, the cardiologist warned that heart valve problems rarely announce their arrival loudly.

Here are some of the symptoms, he asked to watch out for: “Watch out for unexplained tiredness, shortness of breath during everyday activity, swollen legs or ankles, dizzy spells, or a fluttering sensation in the chest,” Dr Mukhopadhyay said. Usually, they are brushed aside, thinking they are due to stress or ageing, but that's unlikely.

2. Get a heart checkup every year

Dr Mukhopadhyay shared, “A basic annual checkup, even just a stethoscope examination, can catch an abnormal heart sound before it becomes a serious problem.” People with a family history of heart diseases need to go for regular checkups, the cardiologist insisted it is ‘essential’, not optional.

3. Ask for an echocardiogram if something feels off

After a regular checkup, if something is off, a correct diagnostic test will help to give a clear answer. The cardiologist suggested an echocardiogram, which is a simple, painless ultrasound of the heart. Why is this effective? It is the most reliable way to detect valve disease early.

"If there is any unexplained breathlessness, fatigue, or dizziness, asking for this test could be one of the most important health decisions a person makes, ” the cardiologist revealed when to ask for this test.

4. Follow age-specific screening guidelines

The risk factors for heart valve disease vary depending on the age group. Here are some of the risk factors, age-wise, as per the cardiologist:

• Those aged 18–40 should address throat infections promptly and consider heart screening if living in high-risk areas.
• Adults aged 40–60 should pay attention to fatigue and breathing changes, especially if they have a family history.
• Anyone over 60 should proactively test for aortic stenosis, the most common valve problem in older adults.

5. Do not dismiss fatigue as just stress or age

Mineral deficiencies affect your body more than you realize, from chronic fatigue to feeling woozy.

“Fatigue is the most underreported and most dismissed cardiac symptom,”the cardiologist warned, urging a prompt shift in the mindset of normalising fatigue. In fact, he revealed that it is one of the earliest signs that the heart is struggling to pump efficiently through a damaged valve. Moreover, if the exhaustion does not go away and keeps being persistent andis unexplained, which only worsens over weeks or months, then it certainly requires a medical check-up.

6. Monitor blood pressure consistently

Blood pressure is one of the prominent risk factors.

Maintaining stable blood pressure is important as it helps to protect long-term heart valve health.

Why? The cardiologist shared, “Consistently high blood pressure forces the heart to work harder with every beat, placing enormous strain on the valves over time. This accelerates valve wear and increases the risk of leakage or stiffening.”He mentioned that monitoringblood pressure is one of the ‘simplest ways’ to protect long-termvalve health.

7. Manage diabetes actively

Diabetes is another major risk factor.

Dr Mukhopadhyay drew attention to blood sugar management as uncontrolled blood sugar damages blood vessels and accelerates the calcification of heart valves. In fact, people living with diabetes are at significantly higher risk of developing valve disease earlier.

The cardiologist assured that a heart valve diagnosis is no longer life-threatening as it once was. Treatment options such as valve repair and replacement have advanced greatly. He also mentioned that for older or high-risk patients, minimally invasive procedures like TAVR allow doctors to replace the valve using a small tube instead of open-heart surgery.

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.