Mitral valve repair best course of action. For patients with the most common type of mitral valve disease, termed "degenerative" or "myxomatous" mitral valve disease, repair rates are very high and long term durability is excellent. There has been great debate about timing of surgery in patients with asymptomatic mitral valve regurgitation. The traditional surgical approach to a mitral valve repair is a full or partial sternotomy, in which the surgeon cuts through the breastbone at the center of the chest to access the heart. There are minimally invasive (port access) options available pioneered by Hugo Vanerman in Belgium. The minimally invasive approach
Mitral valve prolapse when the mitral valve leaflets are displaced more than 2 mm above the mitral annulus high points. The condition can be further divided into classic and nonclassic subtypes based on the thickness of the mitral valve leaflets: up to 5 mm is considered nonclassic, while anything beyond 5 mm is considered classic MVP. Classical prolapse may be subdivided into symmetric and asymmetric, referring to the point at which leaflet tips join the mitral annulus. In symmetric coaptation, leaflet tips meet at a common point on the annulus. Asymmetric coaptation is marked by one leaflet displaced toward the atrium with respect