title: Sudden death in mitral valve prolapse.
abstract: Four cases of sudden death in young females with clinical and pathologic features of mitral valve prolapse are discussed. The approach to postmortem examination of the mitral valve is reviewed and various risk factors are stressed. Because of the sudden nature of these deaths, this entity is more commonly seen in medical examiner's populations than hospital autopsies. A practical approach to the investigation of such cases is given.
authors.affiliation: Office of the Medical Examiner of Cook County, Chicago, IL.
authors.forename: D M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Scala-Barnett
authors.forename: E R
authors.initials: ER
authors.lastname: Donoghue
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001344:Autopsy; D003645:Death, Sudden / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008945:Mitral Valve Prolapse / Q000473:pathology*