Heart Valve Disease on the Gold Coast
01The approach
Imaging the Valves and Tracking Change
Valve problems are frequently picked up as a murmur during an unrelated examination, long before anything else suggests them. At Nuevo Medical, heart valve disease on the Gold Coast is assessed by our cardiologists using echocardiography performed in our own suite, which images valve structure and measures how blood is moving through each one. Many valve findings are monitored rather than treated, sometimes for years, and the interval between scans is the clinical decision that matters most. Where a rhythm disturbance is also present, that's assessed alongside through heart palpitations investigation. Call 1300 068 386 to book an appointment.
02What imaging shows
What Echocardiography Shows About a Valve
A valve study measures several things at once, and each contributes to the overall assessment.
- 01
Valve structure
The appearance and movement of the valve leaflets. Thickening, calcification and restricted movement are all visible on imaging.
- 02
Flow across the valve
Whether blood is passing through normally, narrowly or leaking backwards. Doppler measurement quantifies this rather than describing it.
- 03
Chamber size and function
How the heart chambers have responded to the valve's condition. Changes here often influence the monitoring interval more than the valve measurement itself.
- 04
Comparison over time
Each study is read against previous ones where available. The rate of change is frequently more informative than any single measurement.
03Monitoring
How Monitoring Intervals Are Decided
Most valve findings are followed rather than acted on immediately, and setting the review interval is a clinical judgement your cardiologist makes from several inputs. They'll consider the severity measured on imaging, whether the heart chambers have changed, whether symptoms are present, and how the findings compare with any earlier scans. Your cardiologist will ask about breathlessness on exertion, chest discomfort, dizziness, palpitations and how your exercise tolerance compares with previous years. Bringing earlier echocardiogram reports, including those from other providers, matters here more than on most pages, because the comparison across time is central to the assessment. At each review, the interval to the next one is reset based on what the current study shows.
04Questions
FAQs
A murmur is an additional sound heard through a stethoscope, caused by turbulent blood flow within the heart. Some murmurs relate to valve conditions and others are harmless, which is why echocardiography is used to establish the cause.
No. Many valve conditions are monitored with periodic imaging over long periods, and intervention is considered only when specific clinical criteria are met. That assessment is made by the treating cardiologist.
Valve assessment relies heavily on how measurements have changed over time, so earlier reports provide a comparison that a single new scan cannot. Reports from other providers are equally useful for this.
05Booking
Book a Cardiology Appointment
You can contact Cardiology directly. If a referral is required, Nuevo can help arrange an onsite GP appointment so a GP can assess you and provide the appropriate referral where clinically indicated.
- Phone
- 1300 068 386