The tricuspid valve is on the right side of the heart, regulating the blood ?ow between the right atrium and the right ventricle. Disease in this valve is fairly rare. However, regurgitation (backward leakage of blood through the valve) may occur as the only valve problem or may occur with other problems. Stenosis (narrowing of the valve opening) is most often congenital (from birth) and rarely occurs in adults.

Tricuspid Regurgitation

If the tricuspid valve fails to close fully, blood leaks back (regurgitates) from the right ventricle into the right atrium. Instead of the blood mov- ing forward through the right ventricle to the lungs to pick up oxygen, it backs into the major veins. It most often occurs if the right ventricle becomes enlarged or stiffened from another disorder, such as high blood pressure within the lungs and right side of the heart (pulmonary hypertension). Tricuspid regurgitation may also result from infective endocarditis , rheumatic fever , or car- diomyopathy .
A person with tricuspid regurgitation usually does not have any symptoms, or the symptoms may be mild enough to live with for years, and no treatment is necessary. If you have high blood pressure in the lungs, as well as tricuspid regurgitation, you may develop symptoms of heart failure such as swelling in the stomach, liver, feet, and ankles; weakness and fatigue; and decreased urine output. Treatment with med- ications such as diuretics may relieve the symptoms. If tricuspid regur- gitation is due to pulmonary hypertension, calcium channel blockers may be prescribed. In some people, surgery to replace the tricuspid valve  may be necessary.
If you have tricuspid regurgitation because of an abnormal valve, you are at increased risk of infective endocarditis, and you will need to take antibiotics before some dental and surgical procedures.

Tricuspid Stenosis

If the tricuspid valve is narrowed or blocked, blood ?ow from the right atrium to the right ventricle slows down. The atrium may become enlarged and the blood ?ow to the right ventricle may be impaired. Tricuspid stenosis, which is rare, may be congenital (from birth) or the result of rheumatic fever. If rheumatic fever is the cause, other valves of the heart are usually involved.
Generally, the only symptoms of tricuspid stenosis are fatigue and the pain pressure in the liver (which you are likely to feel in your upper right abdomen). Often these symptoms, as well as some shortness of breath and ?uid retention, are caused by disease in another valve. Treat- ment is likely to focus on the other valves. If your tricuspid valve is severely damaged, surgery is possible. As with other valve disorders, you are at increased risk of infective endocarditis, and your doctor may advise you to take antibiotics before some dental and surgical procedures.