Walters announced that she will undergo surgery to replace a "faulty" heart valve later this week.
"You know how I always say to you how healthy I am. ... I've never missed a day's work," she began. "Later this week, I'm going to have surgery to replace one faulty heart valve."
From her description, the valve defect sounds like aortic stenosis. For a variety of reasons, mitral stenosis is a less likely possibility in the differential diagnosis.
Best wishes for successful surgery and speedy recovery!
References:
Barbara Walters to Undergo Heart Surgery. ABC.
Barbara Walters' Heart Surgery. WebMD.
