I was born with a heart murmur that I have out grown, after giving birth to my son it came back worse according to the doctor. I am now in my mid 30's and have recently given birth to my daugther who is now 17 mos. I have problems breathing just to walk up a flight of stairs and I experience episodes as I call them which is when my heart palpate so fast that I have to be rushed to the hospital for oxygen. I have to take an antibiotic to coat my heart before I get any work done, even if it is for a cleaning from the dentist. I am concern that my life may be at risk because I have never experience it like this before as frequently as I am now. I feel as if I have atshma or emphazema but I don't, that's how bad it is and I am not over weight what so ever. I have been told in the past that I must see a cardiologist on the regular but that was a few years ago. Should I be concern at this point? My, you've gotten some quite bad answers to your question. Between the suggestions for "dietary supplements" and Mr. Cut-and-Paste who didn't actually answer your question, you're getting nowhere.
Pregnancy puts a high volume load on your heart, since you are pumping a much larger blood volume that you are used to. It can cause normally benign heart problems to tip over into heart failure. Shortness of breath can be a symptom of heart failure, so you definitely do need to see a cardiologist or at least a family practice doc or internist. They can give you medications to pull some of the water load out of your body and give your heart a rest
For the ill-informed first answerer, a pacemaker is not the solution for congenital heart disease unless it is causing a block in the electrical conduction. Also, many patients with anomalies in their hearts do take antibiotics before dental work to protect them from getting bacterial endocarditis.
Bottom line, you need to see a doctor. Your symptoms could be due to your heart. You need an echocardiogram (heart ultrasound) and a cardiology appointment. The good news is that heart failure due to congenital (present from birth) problems is easier to treat than that due to multiple heart attacks. A heart murmur shouldn't be serious. But is it has gotten worse, why hasn't the Dr. suggested something or given you real medications to help you. Ask him about a pace make to regulate your heart from palpitation or irregular heart beats.
I have had severe heart problems for years and never heard of antibiotic for anything like that, makes no sense. Are you sure it isn't blood thinner? I would be concerned and visit a cardiologist soon., NOW==== You could try CoQ10 (CoEnzyme Q10), a natural supplement. You can find it at natural supplement stores.
Cheers... A heart murmur is an extra or unusual sound heard during your heartbeat. Murmurs range from very faint to very loud and sometimes sound like a whooshing or swishing noise. Normal heartbeat sounds鈥?quot;lub-DUPP" or "lub-DUB"鈥攁re the valves closing as blood moves through the heart. (Go to the How the Heart Works section for more information about how a normal heart works.)
A heart murmur is not a disease; it is a sound that the doctor hears with a stethoscope. It may be normal, or it could be a sign that something may be wrong. Most heart murmurs are harmless. Some are signs of heart problems, especially if other signs or symptoms of a heart problem are present.
Types of Murmurs
Innocent (harmless) murmurs
A person with an innocent murmur has a normal heart and usually has no other signs or symptoms of a heart problem. Innocent murmurs are common in healthy children.
Abnormal murmurs
A person with an abnormal murmur usually has other signs or symptoms of a heart problem. Most abnormal murmurs in children are due to congenital heart defects鈥攈eart defects present at birth. In adults, abnormal murmurs are most often due to heart valve problems caused by infection, disease, or aging.
Other Names for Heart Murmurs
Innocent Heart Murmurs
Normal heart murmurs
Benign heart murmurs
Functional heart murmurs
Physiologic heart murmurs
Still's murmur
Flow murmur
Abnormal Heart Murmurs
Pathologic heart murmurs
What Causes Heart Murmurs?
Innocent Heart Murmurs
Innocent murmurs are heard when blood moves noisily through a normal heart. Sometimes these murmurs occur when:
Blood is flowing faster than usual through the heart and blood vessels attached to the heart.
An increased amount of blood is flowing through the heart.
Illnesses or conditions that can cause blood to flow faster than usual through the heart include:
Fever
Anemia
Too much thyroid hormone in the body (hyperthyroidism)
Many, if not most, children will have a heart murmur heard by their doctor at some time in their lives. After childhood, the most common cause of an increased amount of blood flowing through the heart is pregnancy. Most murmurs found in pregnant women are innocent. They are due to the extra blood that women's bodies make while they are pregnant.
Innocent murmurs are sometimes due to changes to the heart resulting from heart surgery or from aging.
Abnormal Heart Murmurs
The most common cause of abnormal murmurs is congenital heart defects. Congenital heart defects occur when the heart, heart valves, or blood vessels attached to the heart do not develop normally before a baby is born. Some babies are born with a combination of heart defects. Common defects that cause murmurs include:
Congenital septal defects, which are holes in the wall (septum) that separates the right and left sides of the heart. They account for more than half of abnormal murmurs in children.
Congenital valve defects, which include narrow valves that do not allow enough blood to flow through them and leaking valves that do not close properly.
Figure A shows the normal anatomy and blood flow of the interior of the heart. Figure B shows a heart with a murmur caused by leaking and narrowed valves. Figure C shows a murmur caused by a ventricular septal defect. Please note that many heart murmurs occur in normal hearts and occur without underlying heart disease. These are known as innocent heart murmurs.
Infections and other conditions that damage heart valves or other structures of the heart also may cause murmurs. These include:
Rheumatic fever, a serious illness that can develop after a person has an untreated or incompletely treated infection caused by the bacteria that cause strep throat or scarlet fever. Rheumatic fever can lead to permanent damage to the heart. If your doctor diagnoses strep throat, be sure your child takes all of the antibiotics prescribed, even if he or she feels better before the antibiotics run out.
Endocarditis, an inflammation of the inner lining of the heart and valves that is usually caused by a bacterial infection. Endocarditis is a serious disease that can lead to permanent heart damage and other complications. Endocarditis usually occurs in an abnormal heart.
Calcification (hardening and thickening) of valves as a result of aging. The hardened and thickened heart valves do not work as they should
What Are the Signs and Symptoms of Heart Murmurs?
Most people with heart murmurs do not have any other signs and symptoms of a heart problem. The murmur is usually innocent (harmless).
Some people with heart murmurs do have signs and symptoms of a heart problem. The signs and symptoms may include:
Blue coloring of the skin, especially on the fingertips and inside the mouth
Poor eating and failure to grow normally (in infants)
Fast breathing
Excessive sweating
Chest pain
Dizziness
Shortness of breath
Fainting
Fatigue (feeling very tired)
The signs and symptoms depend on the cause and the severity of the problem causing the murmur.
How Are Heart Murmurs Diagnosed?
Doctors use a stethoscope (STETH-uh-skope) to listen to heart sounds and hear murmurs. They often notice innocent heart murmurs during routine checkups or physical exams.
Doctors may also find abnormal murmurs during routine checkups. Murmurs caused by congenital heart defects are often heard at birth or during infancy. Doctors may hear murmurs caused by other heart problems at any age.
Doctors usually refer people with abnormal murmurs to a heart specialist (a pediatric cardiologist for children or a cardiologist for adults) for further evaluation and testing.
Physical Exam
Doctors listen carefully to the heart with a stethoscope to help decide if a murmur is innocent or abnormal. They listen to the loudness, location, and timing of the murmur to classify and describe the sound. This helps the doctor begin to diagnose the cause of the murmur.
The doctor also:
Takes a medical and family history
Does a complete physical exam, looking for signs of illness or physical problems (such as blue coloring of the skin, delayed growth, and feeding problems in an infant)
Asks about symptoms, such as chest pain, shortness of breath (especially with exercise), dizziness, or fainting
Evaluation of Murmurs
When evaluating a heart murmur, the doctor pays attention to a number of things, including:
How faint or loud the sound is. The doctor grades the murmur on a 1鈥? scale (1 is very faint and 6 is very loud).
When the sound occurs in the cycle of the heartbeat.
Exactly where the sound is heard in the chest, and whether it can also be heard in the neck or back.
Whether the sound has a high, medium, or low pitch.
How long the sound lasts.
How breathing, exercise, or change of body position affects the sound.
Classification of the Murmur
Doctors classify murmurs as:
Systolic鈥攈eard when the heart is squeezing and pumping blood out of the heart.
Diastolic鈥攈eard when the heart is relaxing and filling with blood. Diastolic murmurs are often a sign of a heart defect or heart disease and should be further evaluated.
Continuous鈥攈eard during the entire heartbeat. These are often a sign of a heart defect or heart disease and should be further evaluated.
Tests
When doctors hear a murmur that might be abnormal, they order tests, such as:
Chest x ray. A chest x ray takes a picture of your heart and lungs. It can show if the heart is enlarged, and it can show some problems of the heart and lungs.
EKG (electrocardiogram). This test is used to measure the rate and regularity of your heartbeat. The EKG can help rule out a variety of heart problems.
A heart specialist鈥攁 pediatric cardiologist or a cardiologist鈥攚ill most likely do the followup testing. These tests might include:
Echocardiogram. This test uses sound waves to create a moving picture of your heart. Echocardiogram provides information about the size and shape of your heart and how well your heart chambers and valves are functioning. The test also can identify areas of poor blood flow to the heart, areas of heart muscle that are not contracting normally, and previous injury to the heart muscle caused by poor blood flow.
There are several different types of echocardiograms, including a stress echocardiogram. During this test, an echocardiogram is done both before and after your heart is stressed either by having you exercise or by injecting a medicine into your bloodstream that makes your heart beat faster and work harder. A stress echocardiogram is usually done to find out if you have decreased blood flow to your heart (coronary artery disease).
Cardiac catheterization and angiography. Cardiac catheterization is a procedure in which a thin, flexible tube (catheter) is passed through an artery or vein in your upper thigh (groin) or in your arm to reach the heart, after you are sedated. This allows measurement of pressure inside the heart and blood vessels. Angiography involves injecting a dye that can be seen by using x ray. This helps the doctor see the flow of blood through the heart and blood vessels
How Are Heart Murmurs Treated?
Innocent Murmurs
Healthy children with innocent murmurs do not need treatment because they have a normal heart. If your child has an innocent murmur, alert your pediatrician during regular checkups. Pregnant women with innocent murmurs due to increased blood volume also do not need treatment.
If you have an innocent murmur due to an illness or condition such as anemia, hyperthyroidism, or fever, the murmur will go away once the illness or condition is treated.
Abnormal Murmurs
The treatment for heart problems that cause abnormal murmurs varies depending on the specific heart problem.
The treatment of congenital heart defects is based on the type and severity of the heart defect or defects causing the murmur. Treatment may include medicine or surgery. Children with congenital heart defects are treated by doctors who specialize in treating children's heart problems (pediatric cardiologists). See Congenital Heart Defects for more information.
The treatment of heart problems caused by infection or disease depends on the type and severity of the damage to the heart. The treatment may include medicine or surgery.
Key Points
A heart murmur is an extra or unusual sound heard during your heartbeat. Murmurs range from very faint to very loud and sometimes sound like a whooshing or swishing noise.
Most heart murmurs are harmless (innocent).
Sometimes a heart murmur indicates a heart problem, especially if other signs or symptoms of a heart problem are present.
Innocent, harmless murmurs are common in healthy children. A child or adult with an innocent murmur has a normal heart.
Doctors listen carefully to the heart with a stethoscope to help decide if a murmur is innocent or abnormal.
Doctors listen to the loudness, location, and timing of the murmur in order to classify and describe the sound.
Most abnormal murmurs in children are due to congenital heart defects鈥攈eart defects present at birth.
In adults, abnormal murmurs are most often due to heart valve problems caused by infection, disease, or aging.
In people with innocent heart murmurs, the prognosis is excellent. For people with other types of heart murmurs, the prognosis depends on the type of underlying heart problem and its severity. In general, even when heart surgery is required, the prognosis is good. See your cardiologist soon. Your symptoms are very serious!
Yes, you should be concerned.
Heart palpitations or fibrillation's can be fatal. a heart murmer is a leaky valve. you should probably be on some meds for this if it has worsened or have medical tests performed. |
