Heart murmur symptoms, causes and treatment

When the heart beats, it makes two clear sounds. However, when the doctor discovers the change in these two sounds by means of the stethoscope, it is thoughtto be the heart murmur. This condition may be present on birth or obtainedlater in life. It is important to know that the heart murmur is not a disease, but it can be an indicator of some heart disorder.

Symptoms of heart murmurs

The heart murmurs can be divided into the innocent or harmless and abnormal.The people with innocent heart murmurs barely have any symptoms. On the other side, the abnormal heart murmurs usually indicate some heartdisorder and thus may be accompanied by several symptoms like shortness ofbreath, pain in the chest, excessive sweating and dizziness. Moreover, thepeople who have the abdominal heart murmurs might also experience bluish color ofthe skin on the fingertips and lips, swelling and enlarged liver, as well asenlarged veins in the neck.

Causes of heart murmur

The innocent heart murmurs are not serious and almost half of all childrendevelop it at some point in their life. On the other hand, the abnormal heartmurmurs should be taken seriously since they usually point out to some seriousheart problem.

The innocent heart murmurs typically happen when the blood passes throughthe heart faster than it is normal due to certain conditions such as physicalactivity, pregnancy and fever. Hyperthyroidism and anemia may also beresponsible for the incidence of the innocent heart murmurs. Furthermore, aheart surgery and aging can also cause the occurrence of the innocent heartmurmurs, which can pass over time or stay for life without causing any additional healthproblem.On the other side, the abnormal heart murmurs can be congenital or acquired.The common congenital defects that usually lead to the incidence of the heartmurmurs are septal defects, forming of the holes in the walls that dividethe heart into the four chambers, and the abnormalities of the heart valves. The acquired abnormal heart murmurs are usually caused by several medicalconditions like rheumatoid fever, endocarditis, mitral valve prolapse andvalve calcification.

Treatment of heart murmurs

In the people who suffer from innocent heart murmur, the treatment is notrequired since they have normal heart. When the abnormal heart murmur is in question, the treatment depends onthe causative factor and severity of the problem. As for the medications for the treatment of abnormal heart murmurs, the doctors usuallyprescribe digoxin, anticoagulants, diuretics, statins and ACE inhibitors. In the most severe cases, a surgery or catheterization is necessary.