The normal aortic valve is composed of three thin cusps that project from the wall at the origin of the aorta. Aortic stenosis (AS) refers to a tight valve. Aortic sclerosis is usually considered to be the precursor of calcified, degenerative AS but sclerosis is rather more common than stenosis.
This is a companion discussion topic for the original article at https://patient.info/doctor/cardiovascular-disease/aortic-stenosis-pro