[Mitral valve prolapse and mitral annulus disjunction: be aware of a potential arrhythmogenic substrate]

Mitral valve prolapse is a relatively common disease with a good overall prognosis. However, in specific clinical and instrumental contexts, patients at high risk of ventricular arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death can be identified. Female sex, history of palpitations or syncope, bi-leaflet myxomatous valve, ECG repolarization abnormalities in the inferior leads, complex ventricular arrhythmias, left ventricular fibrosis detected by cardiac magnetic resonance correlate with a higher risk clinical profile. Additionally, morpho-functional abnormalities of the mitral valve annulus, particularly mitral annulus disjunction, may cause a mechanical stretch at the inferior basal ventricular wall and posterior papillary muscles, predisposing to myocardial fibrosis and arrhythmias. A risk stratification strategy is needed to identify patients with mitral valve prolapse and/or mitral annulus disjunction at high risk of arrhythmias; however, few data are available. Further prospective multicenter studies are warranted, focusing on medical therapy, the role of implantable cardioverter-defibrillators for primary prevention, efficacy of targeted catheter ablation or mitral valve surgery.