To schedule an evaluation with a Frankel Cardiovascular Center physician, call 888-287-1082. Or visit the Make a Cardiovascular Appointment page to learn what to expect when you call us.

Physicians: To refer a patient, call M-Line at 800-962-3555.

Tricuspid valve disease may go unnoticed for a long period of time. But as the disease advances, patients may develop symptoms, including:

• Fatigue, a feeling of having no energy
• Irregular heartbeat
• Pulsing sensation in the neck
• Shortness of breath
• Swelling in the legs or abdomen

When listening to your heart, your doctor may hear a heart murmur as the first sign of tricuspid valve disease. This characteristic whooshing sound is turbulent blood flowing through the valve.

To confirm the diagnosis, your doctor orders an echocardiogram. This test uses ultrasound waves to produce a video of the heart pumping and valves opening and closing. The ultrasound probe may be placed on your chest (transthoracic) or guided down your throat (transesophageal) for a better view. 

Our doctors can often repair a leaking tricuspid valve by reshaping the leaflets or stabilizing the base with a synthetic ring. In patients with tricuspid stenosis, the valve is usually replaced with a mechanical or biological tissue valve.

The traditional approach to treating tricuspid valve disease is open-heart surgery or minimally invasive surgery (thoracotomy). But less invasive techniques are emerging. With these approaches, you spend much less time in the hospital, have less pain and recover faster.

The Frankel Cardiovascular Center participates in several clinical trials to offer patients as many options as possible and improve outcomes. These trials use a transcatheter approachin which the doctor inserts a catheter (thin tube) into a blood vessel in the groin and guides it to the heart. Current trials use transcatheter procedures to repair and replace the tricuspid valve.

Tricuspid valve treatment combined with other heart procedures

Because tricuspid valve disease frequently occurs along with other heart or valve conditions, doctors often combine treatments. For example, doctors may perform procedures to treat coronary artery disease, atrial fibrillation and cardiomyopathy along with tricuspid valve repair or replacement.

People with mitral valve disease often develop tricuspid valve disease. To avoid a second surgery, our doctors may proactively repair a tricuspid valve while repairing a mitral valve.