Murmurs What is a heart murmur?

A heart murmur is a noise that can be heard while listening to the heart using a stethoscope. Sometimes the murmur is simply the sound of normal blood flow moving through a normal heart (known as an innocent murmur). Other times, a murmur may be a sign of a heart problem (called an organic murmur).

The difference between innocent and organic murmurs

Heart murmurs are very common, occurring in up to 70% of kids by the time they are school age. Most murmurs are not a cause for concern and do not affect a child's health. These are called “innocent murmurs,” which are produced by a normal, healthy heart. An innocent murmur can come and go throughout childhood, and usually goes away as the child gets older. Many kids will have a heart murmur at some point during their lives.

Other heart murmurs can indicate a problem with the heart. This type of murmur is caused by problems inside the heart, such as an abnormal valve or a hole in an inner wall separating the left from the right side of the heart. These murmurs are much rarer and occur in less than 1% of the population.

If your child’s doctor hears a heart murmur and suspects your child may have a heart condition, he or she will order further tests. The treatment plan your cardiologist recommends will depend on the underlying heart condition.

Programs & Treatments How are heart murmurs treated?

The specialists in our pediatric cardiology clinic are trained to differentiate innocent murmurs (which mean your child is perfectly healthy) from those more serious murmurs that may be a sign of a heart problem. Because murmurs are so common and frequently harmless, many families will be reassured after a thorough physical examination of your child.

Patients with more concerning heart murmurs will receive further evaluation. If a heart problem is found, our pediatric cardiology team will help create a treatment plan designed specifically for your child. Some options include medication, electrophysiology, minimally invasive cardiac catheterization and surgery.

If your child has been diagnosed with a specific condition that causes a heart murmur, please look over the list of Conditions We Treat to learn more.

Signs & Symptoms What are the signs and symptoms of heart murmurs?

Usually, murmurs have no visible signs or symptoms. The most common way murmurs are diagnosed is during a routine pediatric checkup when your child’s doctor listens to the heart. Innocent murmurs will have no other symptoms.

Murmurs are classified by how loud they are. Louder murmurs are usually more serious than quieter ones.

If your child has an abnormal heart murmur, there may be symptoms that indicate there is an underlying heart condition. These symptoms may include:

• Shortness of breath

• Trouble feeding and gaining weight

• Sweating while feeding

• Fatigue

• Cyanosis (a blue tint to the lips and skin)

Please tell your doctor if you notice these symptoms in your child.

Diagnosis & Tests Diagnosing the cause of a heart murmur

A murmur is diagnosed when a doctor hears something extra or unusual in the sound of blood flow. If your child’s pediatric cardiologist thinks a murmur might be abnormal, he or she will order an electrocardiogram (EKG) or echocardiogram (ECHO) to look at the structure of the heart and how it’s functioning. These are safe and painless tests that use electrical signals from the heart and sound waves to produce a movie of the heart at work.

From the EKG and/or ECHO, our team will usually be able to diagnose what’s causing the murmur and, if necessary, develop a treatment plan to fix it.

New treatment for children with heart defects BRENDAN TREMBATH: Australian scientists have developed a new treatment for children with heart defects in an attempt to reduce the need for repeated, high-risk surgery. Many children who develop heart defects early in life are treated with patches made from cow tissue. But the patches often need to be replaced. Scientists say the new patch is more durable. Stephanie Smail prepared this report. BENJAMIN SIMPSON: Testing, testing, testing. STEPHANIE SMAIL: Melissa Simpson's four-year-old son Benjamin was born with a congenital heart defect. MELISSA SIMPSON: When he was born he was critically ill straight away and my world was definitely turned upside down. He spent the first few months in intensive care just fighting for his life and we're very, very lucky to actually have him here today. STEPHANIE SMAIL: It's one of the most common birth defects in Australia. Six babies are born with some form of congenital heart disease every day. Benjamin Simpson has had three open heart surgeries since he was born. MELISSA SIMPSON: I can tell you that the most stressful thing about having a child with a congenital heart defect is handing them over for surgery knowing their heart's about to be stopped and that they're in the hands of a surgeon. You know they have to have the surgery but it is the most scary thing you could possibly go through as a mum and the less times that I have to do that the better. STEPHANIE SMAIL: Surgeons use special patches made from the tissue around pigs' or cows' hearts to repair human congenital heart defects. Dr Tom Karl from Brisbane's Mater Hospital explains. TOM KARL: The heart has four chambers and they're separated by inner walls and some babies are born with part of the wall missing so this patch material can actually be used to reconstruct the inner wall of the heart. STEPHANIE SMAIL: Although the patches work in the short-term, they often cause dangerous calcium build-up or cell damage. But scientists say a new patch, developed in Australia, avoids those problems for up to three years after it's inserted. The patch does use cow tissue but processes it using a different method, ultimately reducing the amount of further surgery needed. TOM KARL: The durability is extremely important in paediatric cardiac surgery because you're looking at a patient who's got hopefully a long life ahead and the contribution with this patch is aimed at improved durability and decreased requirement for revisional surgery after the initial implant. STEPHANIE SMAIL: Dr Tom Karl implanted the new patches into three children at Brisbane's Mater Hospital this week. It's the first time the patch has been used outside a clinical trial. The new tissue patch is yet to receive full Australian marketing approval. The company is also expecting regulatory approval in Europe and the United States next year.

ВКНЗ «Шосткинське медичне училище»

Методична розробка щодо організації ПСРС

на тему: «Ожиріння»

Навчальний предмет: Англійська мова( за професійним спрямуванням)

Спеціальність: «Лікувальна справа»

Курс: ІІ

Кількість годин: 3

Автор: Мартиненко Н.В

Обговорено і затверджено на засідання ЦМК соціально – гуманітарних дисциплін (протокол № від )

Голова комісії

м. Шостка

«Ожиріння»