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INNOCENT HEART MURMURS

What are Innocent Heart Murmurs ?

The heart pushes blood around the body through the arteries. The muscle in the heart contracts regularly. Blood is squeezed out of the heart into the arteries. When the muscle relaxes, the heart fills again with blood from the veins. This happens each time the heart beats. The blood must move in the right direction and there are valves in the heart which close to stop blood flowing backwards. If you listen to a heart with a stethoscope there is a sound like "lub dub" with each heart beat. This is the sound of the valves in the heart opening and shutting. Mostly, one cannot hear the blood passing through the heart. A heart murmur is the name given to the rushing sound made by blood passing through the valves of the heart, and it may be picked up by the doctor during routine examination of the chest. A murmur can occur if there is a leaky or narrow valve in the heart or there is a hole letting blood through between the sides of the heart. However, more often a murmur is heard even in a normal heart without any abnormality. Such a murmur is called "innocent".

How do Innocent Heart Murmurs occur ?

Most innocent murmurs occur because blood is being pumped faster than usual. For example, it is quite common when a child is unwell or has a temperature. Murmurs can also occur if the child has an unusual shaped chest.

Treatment Involved for Innocent Heart Murmurs

It may not be possible to tell just by listening to the heart whether the murmur is an innocent one or whether there is a problem with the heart. The child may need some tests done. An X-ray of the chest, which involves very little radiation, will show the shape of the heart. An electrocardiograph (ECG) involves placing wires onto the child’ s chest, and looks at the electrical activity of the muscle in the heart. An echocardiogram or "echo" uses sound waves to look at the heart muscle and valves, in the same way as the ultrasound tests that pregnant women have. None of these tests is painful. Occasionally a fine tube (cardiac catheter) ned to be passed into the heart via a vein. This may be the only way that the doctor can be certain that no abnormality is present. If the tests show that the heart is normal, the murmur is indeed innocent and no more needs to be done.

During Treatment for Innocent Heart Murmurs

If the murmur is innocent there is no need for treatment or follow up visits. In most cases the murmur goes away as the child grows.

After Treatment for Innocent Heart Murmurs

Parents should remember to tell any doctor that sees their child about the murmur to avoid any unnecessary tests. Children who have had innocent murmurs are no more likely to have heart problems as adults.

If Innocent Heart Murmurs are Left Untreated

The reason for doing the tests is to find the very small number of children who have a problem with their heart. In a child the most likely cause for a murmur is a small hole between the sides of the heart. Most of these will close on their own with time.

Effects on Family of Innocent Heart Murmurs

It is concerning for parents to find that their child has a heart murmur. If the tests show that the murmur is innocent they can be reassured that their child does not have a problem. If the murmur is innocent the child’s heart is normal.