The main etiologies of valvular heart disease (VHD) are rheumatic fever and age-related degeneration. In 2016, the prevalence of patients managed for a VHD was 0,6% of the French population (341,500people). However, few recent incidence data are available in France.

Estimate the annual incidence of patients hospitalized for VHD in France according to their etiology, describe their characteristics and the temporal trends.

All patients hospitalized for VHD in France between 2006 and 2016 were identified using data from the national hospital discharge database (PMSI-MCO) integrated into the national health data system (SNDS). The first stay of the year in which the patient was hospitalized with a principal or related diagnosis of VHD was selected. Descriptive analyses of patients’demographic and medical characteristics and trends from 2006–2016 were stratified according to the origin of valvular heart disease.

In 2016 38,875patients were hospitalized for a VHD in France. Of these, 89% were hospitalized for non-rheumatic VHD (52.1/100,000 person-year (PY)) with an average age of 74years; 5% for rheumatic VHD (3.1/100,000PY) with an average age of 67years; 3% for congenital VHD (1.1/100,000PY) with an average age of 29years; and 3% for unspecified origin. The incidence of patients hospitalized for non-rheumatic VHD increased by 43% between 2006 and 2016, particularly in older patients. It has decreased by 42% for rheumatic VHD. Departmental disparities were observed for these disorders, with a high incidence of hospitalization for rheumatic VHD in the Ile-de-France, the French overseas departments and territories and the south-east.

The improvement in the management of streptococcal A angina, the increase in life expectancy and the expansion of indications for the management of aortic stenosis and mitral regurgitation by transcatheter valve replacement have reshaped the distribution of types of VHD hospitalized since 2006.