What happens during regurgitation?

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Multiple Choice

What happens during regurgitation?

Regurgitation means a valve isn’t closing properly, so blood leaks backward through the valve when the heart contracts. In the ventricle, this means some blood that was meant to move forward into the aorta (or into the pulmonary artery) instead flows back into the atrium through the mitral or tricuspid valve. This backflow causes a volume overload in the atrium and can produce a characteristic murmur. The other ideas describe different cardiac issues—ischemia from a blocked coronary artery, a slower heart rate, or simple diffusion of oxygen in the myocardium—not backward flow through a valve.

Regurgitation means a valve isn’t closing properly, so blood leaks backward through the valve when the heart contracts. In the ventricle, this means some blood that was meant to move forward into the aorta (or into the pulmonary artery) instead flows back into the atrium through the mitral or tricuspid valve. This backflow causes a volume overload in the atrium and can produce a characteristic murmur. The other ideas describe different cardiac issues—ischemia from a blocked coronary artery, a slower heart rate, or simple diffusion of oxygen in the myocardium—not backward flow through a valve.

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