Cardiac fibrosis
Cardiac fibrosis commonly refers to the excess deposition of extracellular matrix in the cardiac muscle, but the term may also refer to an abnormal thickening of the heart valves due to inappropriate proliferation of cardiac fibroblasts. Fibrotic cardiac muscle is stiffer and less compliant, as seen in the progression to heart failure, and prone to cardiac conduction disturbances (which can be heart rate dependent) that may give rise to arrhythmias.