Association of mitral valve leaflet prolapse with cerebral ischaemic events in the young and early middle-aged patient.

In order to clarify possible links between mitral valve leaflet prolapse and cerebral ischaemic events we carried out a study prospectively over a period of two years on 66 patients (35 men and 31 women) under the age of 50 who suffered from transient cerebral ischaemic attacks or completed strokes. Twenty-three (34.8 per cent) of the 66 patients were found to have mitral valve leaflet prolapse syndrome. In 16 (24.2 per cent) of those, the only abnormality found was mitral valve leaflet prolapse, suggesting that the mitral valve leaflet prolapse syndrome may be a potential cause of cerebral ischaemic events. Therapeutic approaches for preventing further similar events are discussed.