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heart murmur

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Q: Heart murmur?
I had a heart murmur as a baby. I didn’t know until my mom told me today.

Does it mean I will develop heart problems later in life?

No rude answers please.

A: No. =) The fact that your mum told you so late in life means she knows it’s an innocent murmur, and it shouldn’t cause you any trouble.

Q: Heart Murmur?
My Mom whos is 54 has just been diagnosed with a heart murmur. She hasn’t been well for years, lots of migraines and severe tiredness. She sleeps for 11 hours a night and can’t exercise or she gets a racing heart that takes ages to calm down and she has to go to bed for a coyple hours sleep. Her throid was low as well but thats sorted now. What is the cause of the heart murmur?

A: There are many different kinds of heart murmurs, you’d have to ask your mum’s doctor for the exact one she has. i have one where there is a flap missing on a valve in my heart giving it an irregular beat and occasionally i get palpitations. once you find out what kind it is/what the cause is you should be able to find some more information and if anything can be done to help or likely side affects.

good luck.

Q: heart murmur?
What makes a heart murmur more audible. I wonder why my doctor after 15 years realized i have one? Things like caffine aka soda and tea make it more audible? Or a faster heart rate? Or what does?

A: Since the murmur is due to turbulent flow, like a babbling brook, anything that magnifies that flow will magnify the sound of the murmur. The flow through the heart is called cardiac output and is increased by exertion, stress and anxiety and stimulant chemicals such as caffeine. Innocent murmurs can thus vary a lot from day to day depending on your physical state. On the other hand murmurs due to structural abnormalities in the heart may also be affected by worsening of these abnormalities with time.

Q: HEART MURMUR!?!?!?!?!?!?
i have am 15 years old,and i have a heart murmur,and i was wondering can they get worse???

A: I have a heart murmur to and yes they can get worse but if you stay healthy it’s a least likely chance. Luckily for me it didn’t get worse.

Q: Is it normal to develop a heart murmur as an adult?
I was recently told I had a heart murmur that I never had before. I’ve been to doctors all my life and it’s never shown up before. Can this kind of heart murmur be innocent? I know people can have innocent heart murmurs from birth, but can you all the sudden develop an innocent heart murmur?

A: Yes you can. There could have been at some time, an underlying medical condition that caused an innocent murmur to develop. It was just not discovered until this last doctor visit. These underlying conditions may include instances where the heart beats more quickly such as fever, hyperthyroidism, anemia and pregnancy. The murmur, as you say, can be completely “innocent” and cause no symptoms. A significant percentage of the population will have some degree of heart murmur. Most cause no problems and thus are never discovered because no doctor was looking for it. As long as you do what everyone should be doing for good heart health, the likelihood that you will ever have symptoms is small. This means no smoking, keeping your weight under control, exercise and if you have diabetes keep it under control.

Q: What is the relationship of a Heart Murmur to a hole in the heart?
I have heard it both ways. Some say the murmur is caused by a heart leakage; others say the murmur is usually nothing to worry about. My son had a stroke caused by, they say, a hole in the heart which shot blood to his brain. Long ago he was turned down from the draft due to a heart murmur and they did not mention that it was anything serious.

A: A heart murmur is caused by turbulent blood flow much like a babbling brook. This can be the result of abnormal valves or a hole in the heart as well, especially if the hole is in the high pressure lower ventricular chamber. Clots rarely may travel through a hole in the low pressure upper atrial chamber and cause a stroke. Because the pressure is low in the atria turbulent flow is generally not enough to cause a murmur. Murmurs can also be generated by forceful blood flow accompanying exercise even when the heart is normal and these are called innocent murmurs. Without knowing all the details it is likely the original murmur was innocent and unrelated to the hole in the heart. These types of hole defects are often totally silent and hard to detect unless and until something bad happens and calls attention to them.

Q: Can a Heart Murmur lead to Diabetes and the Celiac Disease?
The Celiac Disease is when the body is sensitive to Gluten which is found in Rye, Wheat. When the Gluten molecule combines with antibodies in the small intestine. It then causes the lining of the intestine to flatten, which then means that its unable to digest and absorb foods.
A Heart Murmur is when you have an irregular heart beat (like me) and it can be fatal.

A: Heart murmurs are fairly common and I wouldn’t worry about it unless your doctor thinks there is a reason to be concerned. Diabetes could be more likely if you don’t ever exercise because of the heart murmur, but the murmur will not directly cause it. Celiac disease is an autoimmune disease and I don’t think it is related to heart murmurs. Heart murmurs are actually not just irregular beating-it’s hearing an extra or unusual sound during the heart beat. The irregular beating is an heart arrhythmia, which definitely can be a concern. Again, the risk is it is harder to exercise because you don’t want your heart rate to get to high because of the risks and you are more likely to have diabetes if you don’t exercise and eat right.

Q: What does it mean if you have a heart murmur?
I recently went to the doctor for a check up and was told I had a heart murmur. They drew blood and did an EKG, but I haven’t gotten the results yet. What exactly is a heart murmur? Is it serious?

A: In adults, abnormal murmurs are most often due to acquired heart valve problems. A doctor can evaluate heart sounds by listening to your heart with a stethoscope and sometimes will have you undergo other tests to help determine the cause. Treatment, if needed, is directed at the underlying cause of your heart murmurs.

If you have an innocent heart murmur, you likely won’t experience any signs or symptoms.

Frequently an abnormal heart murmur also has no associated symptoms. When the following signs or symptoms are present, they may indicate a heart problem:

Skin that appears blue, especially on your fingertips and lips
Swelling
Shortness of breath
Enlarged liver
Enlarged neck veins
Poor appetite and failure to grow normally (in infants)
Weight gain (in adults and children)
Heavy sweating with minimal or no exertion
Chest pain
Dizziness
Fainting

Treatment
An innocent heart murmur generally doesn’t require treatment because the heart is normal. If innocent murmurs are the result of a condition such as fever or hyperthyroidism, the murmurs will go away once that condition is treated.

If you have abnormal heart murmurs, treatment is often not necessary initially. Your doctor may want to monitor the condition over time. If treatment is necessary, it depends on what heart problem is causing your murmurs and may include medications or surgery.

Medications
The medication your doctor prescribes depends on the specific heart problem you have. Some medications your doctor might give you will:

Help your heart squeeze harder
Prevent blood clots that block your blood vessels
Remove excess fluid from your body
Lower your blood pressure

Surgical options also depend on your specific heart problem but may include:

Patching a hole in your heart
Fixing a valve
Rebuilding a blood vessel
Widening a blood vessel that’s too narrow

In addition, if you have heart murmurs, you may need to be careful of infections that could travel to your heart. To avoid this, your doctor may prescribe antibiotics before you go to the dentist or have surgery or circumstances that can increase the chances of your getting an infection.

Q: What is the difference between a heart murmur and a cardiac arrythmia?
My husband has had a heart murmur from birth. He is now 50. He has a cardiac arrythmia, for which he takes a daily beta blocker.
Are the two conditions one and the same? What role does stress play on the heart?

A: A heart murmur is an abnormal extra sound made when the heart beats. The sound is produced by blood moving through the heart and its valves.
Any disturbance or irregularity of the heartbeat is called cardiac arrhythmias.
Both conditions are different entities and require different treatment.
Stress is the main cause; leading to heart attack (AMI ) and even death in person suffering from cardiac disease/s. It’s the root cause of our fast life.

Q: What are some ways to strengthen a heart with a murmur?
And is there a way for a person with a heart murmur to be able to take part in running track or other strenuous physical activity without making the heart murmur worse or jeopardizing one’s health?

A: It depends on the cause of the murmur. Many innocent murmurs do not affect the heart function. So a full evaluation is required to ascertain the cause of the murmur.

Q: How is Rheumatic fever and a Heart murmur linked to toothache and abscess formation?
How is Rheumatic fever and a Heart murmur linked to toothache and abscess formation?

and what are the complications if the patent’s infection is not treated??

..

A: You will get subacute bacterial endocarditis.

Q: Can you take antidepressants with a heart murmur?Is a heart murmur considered Heart Disease?
My brother went to the Dr. and discovered he had this heart murmur and the Dr. gave him lexapro and I looked up the drug and it says it shouldn’t be taken if yu have heart disease….What is this going to cause?

A: Heart murmurs can be caused by many different issues within the heart and range from benign to serious. Lexapro generally doesn’t have any adverse effects on the heart, but can cause heart palpitations, chest pain, and increases in blood pressure. The reason that Lexapro may not be taken with heart disease is because it has not been systematically evaluated in patients with a recent history of myocardial infarction or unstable heart disease. Bottom-line: they don’t know how it will effect patients with heart disorders, but your brother should closely watch for any strange or unusual sensations, heart rhythms/beats, pain or discomfort. Report anything unusual to the doctor immediately.

Q: What is the life expentancy for a cat with a bad heart murmur?
I found out yesterday that my cat Pinchy has a bad heart murmur (level 4) which he didn’t have a year ago. They’re not going to be able to run an ultrasound for another month – but I’m going to go insane in that amount of time. I’ve already made myself sick all day with worry. Pinchy is only 5 yrs. old. Best and worst case scenario what are we looking at in terms of life expentancy? And is there anything I can do for him while we’re waiting to go for the ultrasound to help with the heart murmur?

A: Non-veterinary answer: We have a cat with a level 4 heart murmur since he was a kitten. He’s 16 now, and it’s the kidneys that are ailing him now, not the heart. He’s always been a low energy cat, likely due to the heart condition, but he we adore him and it appears to be vice-versa!

Q: What food to feed a dog with a heart murmur?
I have a 13 year old dog that was just diagnosed with a moderate heart murmur. The vet recommended that we switched her diet to a low sodium diet. They had food there, but I was wondering what our other options are. She is a 43lbs aussie/lab mix of some sort.
I will ask the vet, but I wanted to get other people’s opinions since vets are known to try and push their products.

A: Do a little research and find out the sodium content in the food your veterinarian is recommending that your dog eat. Take that figure and check sodium contents of other foods that you are interested in. Weight management and senior formulas normally have lower sodium content that other formulas, so check those first.

Q: Should a Doctor investigate a heart murmur discovered in a 2 year old?
I took my 2 year old daughter to a Doctor who is not our norma physician, and she noticed she has a heart murmur….Should our normal Doctor already know this? Should it be checked out?

A: Yes – definitely – tell your normal doctor what the other doctor found and let your normal doctor figure it out from there. There could be many reasons your normal doctor has not detected it. But also know that most heart murmurs are not dangerous. Get it checked out to be safe.

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