What is a Heart Murmur?

The heart has four different areas, or chambers. These chambers are connected to each other by valves that control how much blood enters each chamber at any one time. The valves open and shut with every beat. As the valves shut to control the flow of blood through the heart, they make the sound known as your heartbeat. Each heartbeat is really two separate sounds: “lub-dub”. Your heart goes “lub” with the closing of the valves that control blood flow from the upper chambers to the lower chambers. Then, as the valves controlling blood going out of the heart close, your heart goes “dub.”

A heart murmur is a whooshing sound between the beats that a doctor hears through a stethoscope. It is caused by turbulent blood flow through a valve that either does not open properly, or does not close properly. In other words, the valve is “leaky.”

There are mainly two types of heart murmurs: innocent and abnormal. People suffering from innocent heart murmurs have healthy hearts with no signs or symptoms of heart problems. These murmurs occur when the blood flows faster than normal, or when there is extra blood flow through the heart. These murmurs can also be caused due to changes in the heart after a surgery, aging, or during pregnancy. On the other hand, people suffering from abnormal heart murmurs can have symptoms of heart diseases. Congenital (birth) heart defects, septal defects (holes in the heart), infections, or any damage to the heart valves are some common causes of abnormal heart murmurs. These defects are related to the heart structure, interior walls and valves of the heart that transport blood to other parts of the body. In the majority of cases, heart murmurs are harmless.

Symptoms depend on the cause behind the murmur and how severe that cause is. Some of the signs and symptoms are: Shortness of breath, palpitations (racing heartbeat), chest pain, blue coloring of the skin on the fingertips and inside the mouth, dizziness or fainting, decreased energy, exercise intolerance and abnormal growth and poor eating habits in infants.

Murmurs are diagnosed by listening through a stethoscope. They can be classified by pitch, intensity and length. Another test the cardiologist might do is an echocardiogram. This test uses sound waves to make a picture of the heart as blood is pumped through its chambers and valves. This test can evaluate structure and function of the heart and determine exactly what is causing the murmur and how severe it is.

Most murmurs are innocent and do not require treatment. Some murmurs are abnormal, and require treatment because the limited/turbulent blood flow through valves may weaken and damage the heart over time. Medicines may be used to decrease the workload and improve function of the heart for mild to moderate abnormal murmurs. If a murmur is severe and is causing disabling symptoms or major damage to the heart, surgery may be performed to replace the dysfunctional valve or heart defect.