Being told you or your child has a heart murmur can be frightening, but many murmurs are completely harmless. A murmur is simply the sound of blood flowing through the heart, heard through a stethoscope.
Imagine your five-year-old’s doctor hearing a murmur at a routine check. Your heart sinks. An echo scan a few weeks later shows a perfectly healthy heart: an “innocent murmur” that many children have and most outgrow. You leave reassured, with nothing to change.
Innocent vs abnormal murmurs
- Innocent (functional) murmurs are common in children, pregnancy, fever, anaemia and during exercise. The heart is normal.
- Abnormal murmurs are caused by a heart problem, such as a valve that’s narrowed or leaky, or a hole in the heart present from birth.
In older adults, murmurs are more likely to be caused by valve conditions such as aortic stenosis, which becomes more common with age.
How murmurs are checked
Depending on the sound and your symptoms, you may have an echocardiogram (an ultrasound scan of the heart), an ECG or a chest X-ray. An echo is painless and shows how the valves and chambers work.
But what symptoms should I watch for?
See a doctor if a murmur comes with:
- Breathlessness, especially on exertion or lying flat
- Chest pain or tightness
- Dizziness or fainting
- Swollen ankles or unusual tiredness
- In babies: poor feeding, sweating during feeds, slow weight gain, fast breathing or bluish lips
Many abnormal murmurs need only monitoring. Others are treated with medicines, valve repair or replacement, or procedures to close a hole.
Your next step: If you’ve been told you have a murmur, ask whether it’s thought to be innocent and whether you need an echo or follow-up.
Sources: American Heart Association (Heart murmurs), British Heart Foundation, Mayo Clinic, American Academy of Pediatrics.
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