Written by American Heart Association editorial staff and reviewed by science and medicine advisers. See our editorial policies and staff. Heart Valve Disease. About Heart Valves. Heart Valve Problems and Causes. Getting an Accurate Diagnosis. Treatment Options. Recovery and Healthy Living Goals. Problems may include:. This infection can seriously damage your heart's valves.
Septal defects are holes inside the heart. People who have septal defects were usually born with them. Whether or not septal defects are dangerous depends on where the holes are and how big they are. Cardiologists and cardiothoracic surgeons are doctors who specialize in treating heart valve diseases. These doctors can recognize and diagnose valve diseases that may be missed by other doctors. Not all heart murmurs need to be treated with surgery. Some abnormal heart murmurs can be managed with medication.
Some common medications used to treat heart murmurs include the following:. If something is wrong with your heart—for example, if you have a hole in your heart or one of your heart valves needs to be replaced—then you may need surgery.
Surgeries for heart murmurs often include valve repair and valve replacement. If you do need surgery, your cardiothoracic surgeon will try to make sure your surgery is as minimally invasive as possible. Transcatheter aortic valve replacement also known as TAVR or TAVI is also a good treatment option for patients who can't have surgery, or for patients who want a less invasive option than open heart surgery.
The MitraClip is a tiny device about the size of a dime that treats mitral regurgitation. The MitraClip pinches your mitral valve so it can close more fully.
Closing your mitral valve stops blood from leaking backwards. Instead, your doctor will insert your MitraClip through a thin tube catheter that runs through your leg and into your heart. At University of Utah Health, a heart team that includes a cardiologist and a cardiothoracic surgeon will evaluate your heart murmur. Your heart team will examine your heart and rule out any serious, undiagnosed heart conditions that may need treatment. Schedule an appointment with a heart specialist.
Heart murmurs are sounds — such as whooshing or swishing — made by turbulent blood in or near your heart. Your doctor can hear these sounds with a stethoscope. A normal heartbeat makes two sounds like "lubb-dupp" sometimes described as "lub-DUP" when your heart valves are closing.
Heart murmurs can be harmless innocent or abnormal. An innocent heart murmur is not a sign of heart disease and doesn't need treatment. Abnormal heart murmurs require follow-up testing to determine the cause. Treatment is directed at the cause of your abnormal heart murmur.
An abnormal heart murmur may cause the following signs and symptoms, depending on the cause of the murmur:. Most heart murmurs aren't serious, but if you think you or your child has a heart murmur, make an appointment to see your family doctor.
Your doctor can tell you if the heart murmur is innocent and doesn't require any further treatment or if an underlying heart problem needs to be further examined.
A person with an innocent murmur has a normal heart. This type of heart murmur is common in newborns and children. An innocent murmur can occur when blood flows more rapidly than normal through the heart. Conditions that may cause rapid blood flow through your heart, resulting in an innocent heart murmur, include:.
Innocent heart murmurs may disappear over time, or they may last your entire life without ever causing further health problems. In adults, abnormal murmurs are most often due to acquired heart valve problems. In children, abnormal murmurs are usually caused by structural problems of the heart congenital heart defects. Some of the specific illnesses that cause abnormal heart murmurs include mitral valve prolapse, valve calcification , endocartitis, and rheumatic fever. Abnormal heart murmurs are the most common variety experienced by adults, though it is possible to have an innocent heart murmur at any age.
Innocent murmurs can arise from any condition that provides an increased flow of blood to the heart, such as pregnancy or anemia. One of the most common ways an adult can get an innocent heart murmur is from mitral valve prolapse. This minor heart condition can be detected at birth or happen later in life.
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