I would like to tell a little bit about the history of MVP.  There are lots of things documented back to 1860, which I will not tell all of on this page.  If you wish to read more on the history, I recommend Sharon Andersons book.  It is quite the story, and sure sheds some light as to why it is treated as a neurotic disease today, and still not taken seriously by some doctors.

     The first abnormal heart sounds were recorded in  the 1860s by a Nothern American army physician, Dr. J.M. Da Costa, during the American Civil War.

     Dr Da Costa's observations and conclusions were based on 300 cases of soldiers with abnormal heart sounds.  The soldier would get diarrhea, fever, shortness of breath, dizziness and palpitations, and chest pain. It was decided these men were unfit for duty and they were sent to hospital.  The heart took quite some time to return to normal.   Dr. Da Costa also noticed these symptoms among the civilian population, and believed this "irritable heart" which he called it, to be very common.

   Along with these findings Dr.  Da Costa also found extra systolic sounds with his stethoscope, which researchers today know to be the "click" of MVP.

    Due to the prevalence of this disorder, Dr. Da Costa issued a warning to physicians not to confuse the extra systolic sounds with valvular disease such as that known to cause the regurgitant, pan-systolic murmur with cardiac enlargement and evidence or rheumatic disease.  His purpose was to avoid alarming patients, and so the foundation was laid for the modern approach to MVP

    After Dr. Da Costa there were doctors advocating dismissing regurgitation because they felt it could not be known whether it was there or not.  Than another who advises it is part of our physiology, designed by our Creator.

     The turning point in the debate over extra systolic sounds came from Dr. J.V.O. Ried of the University of Natal in Durban, South Africa.  In 1961 five of his patients with murmurs had at autopsy, definite pathological abnormalities.

    In 1965 a cardiology convention was held on the subject of systolic murmurs and non-ejection clicks on MVP.

Dr. Barlow, an expert on auscultation was asked to speak.  Dr Barlow came to some startling conclusions about the debated extra systolic sounds.  He had published an article in 1963 on MVP demonstrating indisputably that the murmur heard in late systole was, like the traditional pan-systolic murmur caused by regurgitation.  His work finally indicated valvular disease and regurgitation.

    Barlow, with an invasive test using radiographic contrast material or dye, could measure the severity of regurgitation, presence of congenital or acquired valvular legions, the pressure in the left ventricle and its motion, the volume of blood in the heart at the end of systole and diastole and the ejection factor. (percentage of blood pumped out of the ventricle)

    His findings were: 

• Pan systolic murmur: large amounts of dye entered the left atrium

• late systolic murmur: a small amount of dye was seen in the left atrium

• no murmur: no blood was forced back into the atrium.

    After Barlow's findings organic of the mitral valve could not longer be denied in the presence of extra systolic signs of a murmur, despite the absence of heart disease: cardiac enlargement and deformities of any part of the heart's structure.  

     In spite of all the findings, understanding of this disease was to take years by physicians. Patients are still being told they have "innocent" murmurs and told to go home and do what ever it is they were doing before.  They are told, they never have to be checked again and nothing need ever be done about this.  If persons "carry" on about their symptoms they are being treated as neurotic persons and psychiatric help is suggested, and nerve pills prescribed.   Though things are changing it seems to take a lot of time and loss of lives before we all will get the medical attention we all deserve and and are entitled to.  Not to mention the frustrations of not being believed when we have these symptoms.

• Billowing Sail Deformity : Oka and Angrist, 1961
• Mid-late Systolic Click and LSM:  Barlow et al., 1968
• Billowing Mitral Valve Leaflet:  Bittar an Sosa, 1968
• Ballooning Deformity of Atrioventricular Valves:  Pomerance, 1969
• Floppy valve Syndrome:  Read et al., 1965
• Redundant Cusp Leaflet Syndrome:  Hill et al., 1974
• Prolapsing Mitral Leaflet Syndrome: Matajajan et al., 1975
• Barlow's Syndrome: Cobbs, 1974

The name finally settled on was Mitral Valve Prolapse, a term first used in 1966.