[Current diagnosis and therapy in heart valve diseases]

We present a survey of the current standard in diagnosis and therapy of the most frequent heart valve lesions. During the last 50 years there has been a dramatic shift concerning the etiology of valve lesions with a rise of the age-dependent degenerative towards rheumatic valve diseases. The aim of the diagnostic evaluation of valve lesions is primarily the clinical and hemodynamic grading of the severity of the valve disease, the recognition of relevant coexisting cardiac and extracardiac diseases and furthermore, an optimal timing of surgery in close correlation with the cardiac surgeons.