Diagnosis

Your doctor will do a physical exam and ask questions about your signs and symptoms and your medical and family history. Your doctor will listen to your heart with a stethoscope to check for a heart murmur, which can be a sign of mitral valve disease.

An echocardiogram is the main test used to diagnose congenital mitral valve anomalies. In an echocardiogram, sound waves create video images of your heart in motion. An echocardiogram can show the structure of the heart and heart valves and blood flow through the heart.

There are two types of echocardiograms. During a standard (transthoracic) echocardiogram, the technician presses a device (transducer) firmly against your skin, aiming an ultrasound beam through your chest to your heart. The transducer records the sound wave echoes from your heart. A computer converts the echoes into moving images.

If a standard echocardiogram doesn't give your doctor enough information, you may need a transesophageal echocardiogram. During this test, a flexible probe containing the transducer is guided down your throat and into the tube connecting your mouth to your stomach (esophagus).

Other tests, such as a chest X-ray or electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG), also may be done.