How do you know if you have a heart murmur and what to do?

A heart murmur is an abnormal sound made by the blood as it circulates through the heart. Doctors can hear a heart murmur using a stethoscope. The murmurs may be mild or indicate a serious heart problem. Research estimates that heart murmurs affect up to 72% of children. Often the murmur goes away with age. However, some people can live with a heart murmur until adulthood. In adults, certain heart conditions, including valve disease, can cause heart murmurs.

Here are the types of heart murmurs, their causes, and some treatment options.

What is a heart murmur?

Heart murmurs are the result of vibrations, or turbulence, that blood causes as it circulates through the heart. This produces sounds that doctors can hear using a stethoscope. When heart valves open and close, they make a “valve sound”. However, valves that do not open or close normally can cause blood to leak backwards or prevent blood from flowing forward, creating a sound called “breath”.
Blood moving very quickly through the heart can also create a type of murmur called a “flow murmur”.

There are two main types of heart murmur: benign murmur and abnormal murmur. Flow murmurs are a type of mild murmur.
Innocent or mild murmurs occur when there is no structural abnormality or heart problem. Abnormal murmurs, on the other hand, occur when an underlying heart problem is causing the symptom. A person with a heart murmur should see a doctor to determine if their murmur is innocent or if it requires additional testing and monitoring.

Benign heart murmur

Mild heart murmurs, such as those caused by high blood flow, may go away over time without requiring treatment. They are more common in children or adolescents. Doctors don’t generally consider innocent heart murmurs to be serious. However, the murmur may be due to a minor valve malfunction, which healthcare professionals will need to watch out for without necessarily performing major surgery.

Abnormal heart murmur

An abnormal heart murmur indicates an underlying heart problem.

Abnormal heart murmurs in adults are usually associated with heart valve disease. They can be related to:

– valvular calcification
– endocarditis
– acute articular rhumatism

Types of heart murmurs

Doctors classify heart murmurs according to the stage of the heartbeat at which they hear sound. They listen to the heart using a stethoscope. The heart’s valves open and close as it pumps, producing a thudding sound. Doctors can then define murmur as follows:

– Systolic murmur: The sound occurs when the heart muscle contracts.
– Diastolic murmur: Breath occurs when the heart muscle relaxes and blood enters the lower chambers of the heart.
– Continuous breath: Doctors can hear the murmur throughout the heartbeat, as the heart contracts and relaxes.

Common causes of a heart murmur

There are many possible causes of heart murmur.

Doctors classify murmurs according to their cause:

– Flow murmurs: Exercise, pregnancy, and anemia can all cause high blood flow, as can hyperthyroidism, fever, and rapid growth spurts. High blood flow can cause innocent murmur.

– Heart valve murmurs: Problems with a valve in the heart, such as an aortic stenosis or a bicuspid aortic valve, can cause a heart murmur.

– Murmurs due to ventricular problems: Conditions that affect the ventricles and the blood flow through them, such as functional mitral regurgitation, can cause murmur.

– Murmurs due to complications from other conditions: Certain conditions that affect the heart, such as endocarditis and lupus, can also cause a heart murmur.

– Murmurs related to congenital heart disease: Heart problems present from birth, such as a hole in the heart, can cause murmur.
Specific conditions and factors that can cause abnormal heart murmurs

Abnormal heart murmurs can be caused by a variety of factors, including:

– Heart valve disease: This is the result of a defect in the structure of the heart. Some of these conditions may be present at birth or acquired.

– Perforation of the ductus arteriosus: This happens when the opening between the aorta and the pulmonary artery does not close after birth, as it should.

– Age: with age, calcium can accumulate in the heart valves. This reduces the opening of the valves, making it more difficult for blood to pass through them.

– Aortic valve defects: Sometimes the aortic valve dilates or stretches and stops working properly. This causes blood to leak backwards, producing a heart murmur. Doctors call this condition aortic regurgitation.

– Infectious endocarditis: This is a bacterial infection of the lining of the heart, which can also affect the valves. The growth of bacteria narrows the opening of the valves and affects the flow of blood through them.

– Chronic rheumatic heart disease: People with this disease have chronic inflammation of the heart valves, which affects the function of the valves and therefore the blood flow through them.

– Tumors: Tumors can also form on a heart valve. Tumors in other parts of the heart, such as the left atrium, can cause a heart murmur by affecting the flow of blood through the heart.

– Septal defects: Arterial and ventricular septal malformations mean that there are holes in the walls between the upper or lower chambers, respectively.

Symptoms of a heart murmur

A person with an abnormal heart murmur may feel dizzy. People who have a heart murmur may not experience any symptoms.
Others, especially those with an abnormal heart murmur, may experience symptoms depending on the underlying cause.

For example, people may feel:

– shortness of breath
– dizziness
– fainting
– bluish skin
– a chronic cough
– palpitations
– swelling of the legs or abdomen

A newborn baby can have:

– difficulty eating
– stunted growth
– a bluish tinge to the skin during diet or physical activity
– breathing difficulties
– excessive agitation

When to contact a doctor

Doctors usually diagnose heart murmurs during a routine physical exam. Heart murmurs may not be serious, but a person should always check them with a doctor to rule out something serious, even if there are no symptoms.

A person should contact a doctor if they regularly feel:

– weak or dizzy
– short of breath
– has swelling of the legs and ankles due to fluid build-up.

Diagnostic

Doctors listen to the heart with a stethoscope and look for breathing abnormalities and changes in skin color. They may need to do other heart function tests, including blood pressure, the amount of oxygen in the blood, and the pulse. Doctors will also use an echocardiogram to take pictures of the heart valves. They then assign a grade or score to each heart murmur.

The rating system for murmurs that occur when the heart contracts is 1 to 6, with 1 being very weak and 6 being very strong. For murmurs that occur when the heart relaxes, the scoring system is 1 to 4. It is important to note that the volume of the murmur does not correlate with its severity. A weaker murmur can sometimes mean that the condition is more serious. Doctors also need to determine the duration of the heart murmur and its exact location in the heart.

Processing

A doctor may prescribe ACE inhibitors to lower blood pressure. Heart murmurs themselves usually do not require treatment.
However, an abnormal heart murmur is a symptom of an underlying condition that may require treatment. Doctors will recommend treatments that lower blood pressure to improve blood flow through the valve, reduce damage to the valve, or both. For example, people may need medication

Some people will need surgery to repair or replace a defective valve. However, people with mild heart valve disease may never need to be operated on. That said, if the heart valve defect begins to significantly affect blood flow in the heart, cause symptoms, or increase pressure in the heart, valve repair or replacement may be necessary.