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Heart murmurs: What symptoms to watch out for

Eating healthy and exercising regularly can help minimize your risk of getting abnormal heart murmur. (Thinkstock photo)
Eating healthy and exercising regularly can help minimize your risk of getting abnormal heart murmur. (Thinkstock photo)

A normal heartbeat has two sounds. A heart murmur is the extra rasping, humming or whooshing sound that can be heard in-between. It must be investigated to be sure it’s “innocent”, meaning harmless.

As opposed to an innocent heart murmur, an abnormal heart murmur may point to a serious underlying heart problem such as damaged heart valves or congenital heart defects like a hole in the heart.

“Prognosis for abnormal heart murmurs varies according to the underlying heart problem and its severity. It is excellent in patients with otherwise structurally normal hearts and poor in patients with severe underlying valvular or congenital heart defects,” says Dr Peter Ting, Consultant, Department of Cardiology at the National Heart Centre Singapore (NHCS), a member of the SingHealth group.

Related article: 10 superfoods to protect your heart

What causes a heart murmur?

The extra or unusual sound characteristic of a heart murmur is due to the faster blood flow through the heart valves and/or blood vessels near the heart.

Innocent heart murmurs

Innocent heart murmurs are common in children. “About 50 per cent of children will have a heart murmur detected during a routine physical examination at some point in their childhood, but only less than 1 per cent are abnormal heart murmurs,” says Dr Ting.

In adults, an innocent heart murmur may be triggered by:

  • Pregnancy

  • Physical exercise

  • Fever

  • Anaemia (low red blood cell count)

  • Hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid)

Related article: Anaemia: What is the most common cause in Singapore and how to prevent it

Because patients with innocent heart murmurs have structurally normal hearts and no underlying heart problems, these murmurs may disappear over time, or they may persist without causing any harm.

Abnormal heart murmurs

Abnormal heart murmurs in children are usually due to congenital heart defects such as a hole in the heart, abnormalities in the heart chambers or their connecting blood vessels, or defective heart valves. For instance, the heart valves can be too thick and narrow (valve stenosis) to allow normal blood flow, or they can leak (valve regurgitation).

These congenital heart problems put undue pressure on the heart which must work harder to pump the required amount of blood, resulting in turbulent blood flow - and heart murmurs.

Abnormal heart murmurs in adults are often the result of acquired heart valve diseases such as damaged heart valves due to ageing, rheumatic fever, valve stenosis, ischaemic heart disease and endocarditis (infection of the endocardium, the heart’s inner lining).

Heart murmur symptoms

You may not know you have a heart murmur because you cannot hear it. Heart murmurs can only be heard through a stethoscope.

However, symptoms such as chest pain, shortness of breath, dizziness, heart palpitations or lower limb swelling may indicate an underlying heart problem that can cause a heart murmur.

Heart murmur treatment

Innocent heart murmurs do not need treatment because the heart is structurally normal. Treatment for abnormal heart murmurs varies, depending on the underlying heart problem.

For instance, the treatment may include medications to lower high blood pressure and normalise thyroid hormone levels, antibiotics to treat heart infections and surgery to repair heart valves.

Related article: 6 tips our heart specialist recommends to prevent abnormal heart murmurs

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By Teresa Cheong for HealthXchange.com.sg.

Health Xchange's articles are meant for informational purposes only and cannot replace professional surgical, medical or health advice, examination, diagnosis, or treatment.