Heart murmurs are extra or different sounds that occur due to blood moving within the heart. Innocent murmurs are often heard in children. Murmur can sometimes be the first sign of congenital heart disease. Echocardiography performed by a Pediatric Cardiologist distinguishes whether it is an innocent murmur or not. They rate it from 1 to 6, 1 being the mildest and 6 being the most severe. There are three types; It occurs in systole (during contraction of the heart), diastole (during relaxation of the heart) or continuously (during both contraction and relaxation).
What causes it?
It can be heard in normal healthy children. This condition is called an innocent murmur. It may occur in cases such as fever, anemia, or overactivity of the thyroid gland, even though there is no heart disease, and this is called a functional murmur. When the underlying cause is treated, the murmur disappears. However, most importantly, it is sometimes auscultated in heart disease in children. Murmur is the most common finding that initiates the diagnosis of heart disease in children. Heart diseases that cause murmurs in children are either congenital, such as holes or stenosis, or acquired diseases (such as rheumatic valve disease).
What are the symptoms of murmurs in children?
In children with innocent murmurs There are no symptoms other than a different heart sound. The following symptoms may be seen in children whose heart murmur is heard due to heart disease on auscultation, depending on the severity of the disease or problem;
- Inability to suck, loss of appetite, weakness, inability to gain weight
- Frequent breathing
- Sweating
- Chest pain
- Dizziness or fainting (syncope)
- Bluish skin, especially on the lips and fingertips
- Cough
- Edema (swelling in the back in infants and in the feet, ankles and legs in older children)
Heart murmur symptoms may be confused with symptoms seen in other diseases. A pediatric cardiologist should be consulted to clarify the situation.
How is a murmur diagnosed?
Your doctor asks questions and examines your child's symptoms and health. During the examination, he examines your child's heart with a tool called a stethoscope, which has been used for 2 centuries. listens.
If your doctor hears a different heart sound, he will refer you to a pediatric cardiologist. Pediatric cardiologists are doctors specially trained for the diagnosis and treatment of pediatric heart diseases. Some or all of the following tests are performed;
- Chest x-ray; the image of the heart and lungs is monitored
- Electrocardiogram (ECG); It measures the electrical activity (condition) of your child's heart
- Echocardiography (ECHO); It is a diagnostic method that examines the structure and functions of the heart using sound waves (ultrasound). It is the most important diagnostic method to determine the cause of heart sounds.
How is it treated?
Treatment varies depending on your child's symptoms, age, general health condition and severity of the disease. p>
Many heart murmurs are extra sounds heard in the hearts of healthy children without heart disease. These children with innocent murmurs do not need to be treated. Most of these heart sounds disappear on their own over time. If it is caused by non-cardiac causes such as fever or anemia, its severity usually decreases or disappears over time with the treatment of this cause.
If it is caused by a hole in the heart, valve stenosis or a more complicated congenital heart disease, medication may be given for treatment and catheter intervention. or surgery may be performed.
Will a heart murmur harm my child?
A heart murmur is a hearing finding during a doctor's examination and cannot harm your child. However, the underlying heart disease itself can cause harm. Conditions that harm the child, such as growth and development disorders, frequent lung infections, and heart failure, which may be encountered in children with congenital heart disease, are caused by the heart disease itself, not by the murmur.
Basic information about heart murmur in children:
- Heart murmurs are extra or different sounds produced by the circulation of blood within the heart.
- Many of them are harmless and innocent.
- Sometimes they may be caused by congenital heart diseases or non-cardiac causes.
- Your doctor diagnoses a heart murmur by listening to your child's chest with a stethoscope.
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