- For most people, valvular heart disease causes pain. This pain is usually isolated to the chest, and ranges from a squeezing pressure to a sharp, shooting pain. Since the muscles of the heart are being deprived of both blood and oxygen, they go into distress and cause a person to suffer from pain.
- When someone suffers from a valvular heart disease, they often experience myocardium disturbances. In some people, this is felt as an irregular or uneven heartbeat. In others, it takes the form of a murmur. With an irregular or uneven heartbeat, the speed of the beat becomes almost disorganized or out of time due to the abnormal amount of blood entering and exiting the heart. With a murmur, it is actually an additional sound created by the heart when the valve doesn't properly close, causing blood to "whoosh" in the wrong direction.
- Valvular heart disease can also cause respiratory disturbances. With this symptom, the individual often suffers from shortness of breath or more labored breathing. This is largely due to the disruption in the level of oxygen supplied to the heart by the blood. Though oxygen is still taken into the lungs, not enough of it is making its way to the heart, which affects the body's oxygen level.
- With the diseased valve disrupting the flow of blood and oxygen, the heart will need to work harder to compensate. If left undetected and untreated, the individual eventually become fatigued or exhausted. Partly due to the overburdened heart, but it's also a result of the decreased oxygen in the system.
- It's also not uncommon for valvular heart disease to cause some faintness. This again goes back to the level of oxygen in the body. When it's reduced, a person can become faint and even lose consciousness.
- Someone suffering from valvular heart disease may also retain fluids. This retention is typically isolated to the feet and ankles. Depending on the severity of the valvular defect, the swelling can range from subtle to pronounced.
