Mitral leaflet separation index. An easy two dimensional echocardiography technique for assessment of mitral valve area before and after percutaneous balloon mitral valvuloplasty.

Aim: To evaluate the reliability of the mitral leaflet separation (MLS) index against the traditional echocardiographic methods in measuring mitral valve area (MVA) pre and post percutaneous balloon mitral valvuloplasty (PBMV).

Methods: Ninety patients suffering symptomatic moderate to severe MS underwent PBMV at Ain Shams University Hospital in cardiology department. Seventy of the patients were females representing 77.