Genetic Link In Heart Valve Disease Deaths Found

There may be a strong genetic component to deaths caused by cardiac valve diseases, which seem to run in families, says a study in the current issue of Circulation. The study found that first-degree relatives of people who died of mitral valve disease -- siblings, parents, or children -- were 2.5 times more likely to also die of it. Second-degree relatives of people who died of mitral valve disease, meanwhile, were 67 percent more likely to die of the same cause.