What is a heart murmur and why is it bad?
In: 5
There’s many types of heart murmurs and not all are necessarily “bad” but may require further work-up with an echocardiogram (heart ultrasound) or a visit with a heart doctor.
Any murmur heard with a stethoscope represents turbulent blood flow and most are associated with heart valves. There are 4 valves in total – the tricuspid, mitral, aortic, and pulmonary valves. If the valve is scarred, has calcium deposits, or is otherwise narrowed for any reason, blood doesn’t flow smoothly and that can be heard as a murmur.
Valves can also be “leaky” and allow blood to flow backwards (this is called regurgitation in medical speak). Again, thus causes turbulence which can be heard on exam with a stethoscope
Finally, some people are born with a “hole in the heart” which is a defect in the heart tissue that allows blood to flow from one chamber to another; the most common is a ventricular septal defect where some blood flows from the left ventricle to the right instead of being pumped through the aorta. Small ones are often left alone but larger ones sometimes need surgical repair at some point, usually in childhood.
Same principle applies – turbulent blood flow creates the murmur
Murmurs become “bad” when the valve or defect is so great that not enough blood flows in the correct direction and leads to heart failure with blood backing up in the lungs, liver, body tissues, etc. You can also have poor delivery of oxygenated blood to vital organs such as the brain, contributing to fatigue and fainting among other symptoms. If medications and fluid management doesn’t help, severe cases may require surgery to replace or repair the culprit valve.
Latest Answers