Abstract
MITRAL-valve prolapse is a common disorder whose prevalence has been reported to be from 6 to 21 per cent in otherwise normal subjects.
1
,
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It is approximately three times more common in females than in males, and it appears in some instances to be familial.
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Its pathogenesis is unknown, although in some cases there may be myxomatous transformation of the valve leaflets or abnormalities of the chordae tendineae, papillary muscles, or adjacent myocardium. An apparent association with heritable disorders of connective tissue, such as Marfan's syndrome,
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Ehlers-Danlos syndrome,
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osteogenesis imperfecta,
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and pseudoxanthoma elasticum,
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suggests that in some cases a common developmental . . .
