title: [Influence of gender on the etiology of mitral regurgitation].
abstract: Our aim was to investigate the prevalence of the different causes of severe mitral regurgitation and the influence of gender on that prevalence. We performed a prospective study of 272 consecutive patients with severe mitral regurgitation that had been detected echocardiographically. Their mean age was 70.2 (13.8) years, and 143 were women (52.6%). Atrial fibrillation was present in 52.9%, 72.7% presented with heart failure, and 21.0% with previous myocardial infarction. The most common etiological factor was rheumatic disease (in 26.5%), with the etiology being unclear in 32 patients (11.8%). Rheumatic disease was more frequent in women, at 35.7%, than in men, at 16.3%, whereas other etiologies were less frequent in women (P< .001). In all age groups, a rheumatic etiology was more frequent in women. Rheumatic heart disease remains the main cause of severe mitral regurgitation observed in women referred to hospitals similar to ours.
authors.affiliation: Servicio de Cardiología, Hospital Universitario Gregorio Marañón, Madrid, Spain. mmselles@secardiologia.es
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Martínez-Sellés
authors.forename: Miguel A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: García-Fernández
authors.forename: Mar
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Moreno
authors.forename: Edith
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Larios
authors.forename: José A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: García-Robles
authors.forename: Angel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pinto
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008944:Mitral Valve Insufficiency / Q000209:etiology*; D012214:Rheumatic Heart Disease / Q000150:complications; D012737:Sex Factors