Heart Murmur - Elberfeld, IN

My son was four before they found his . I was scared to death when they told me . We took him for all the tests and his was only what they call an innocent heart murmur .Lots of children have them and dont even know it . They told me he could live a normal active life .Believe me he does and it never bothers him he is 5 now and getting ready to play his first year of t-ball ! I hope yours turns out the same way ! My prayers will be with you !

Hi C.!

Definatley get it checked out, you won't rest until you do! My daughter was diagnosed with one at her (I think) 6 mo. check-up. She did outgrow it, or it went away by her first birthday.

A.

Hello C.!
My now 22-month old son was found to have a murmur as a newborn. Echo showed that he has pulmonary valve stenosis, and we later found out there were some additional congenital defects with his pulmonary arteries. As a note of encouragement, these "defects" did not bother him in any way! I am a pediatric nurse, and have seen how some heart issues can make a child sickly. But Aiden has always been as normal as can be!

So, what you've read is correct . . . some murmurs are "innocent" and cause no issues. Some murmurs indicate that a "defect" needs to be corrected. My advice to you - take it one step at a time! Listen to the doctors, ask questions, get a second opinion if you aren't comfortable with the first. And I would encourage you to make sure you are seeing a Pediatric Cardiologist, and that whoever is doing the echo has experience in pediatrics (I have always been partial to children's hospitals - - Riley in Indy is EXCELLENT! - although I think it'd be a little far from you)

Although Aiden has never shown obvious symptoms of his heart defects, we have regularly followed up with his cardiologist . . . have had numerous echos and EKGs since the day he was born . . . just recently had 2 cardiac catheterizations to correct the defects. . . and will continue follow-up appointments his entire life.

All this to say, if you'd like some more information, referrals, or just good old support, I've been through it too - as a mother and a nurse! Please feel free to contact me!
~H.

Actually, my family has 4 people who have heart murmurs. My grandfather, uncle, myself and my daughter all have a murmur. At my daughters 6 month check up they sent her for her echo and ekg. All of our murmurs are called innocent murmurs--which basically means that they do not cause us any pain or give us any issues. On the other hand I have read about murmurs that require you to take special medicine before going to the dentist. The only way you will know is to get the results of the ekg and echo.

My grandfather, uncle and myself have all had chest pains as we get older or when we are under a lot of stress. Other than that no one has had any problems :)

Hi C. B,

My middle child who will be actually 3 in July had the same thing a heart murmur herself when she was born. We had to go to Riley Hospital ourselves when she 3 days old they did they same procedure as you described and the hole was small when they detected it. Then when she was 10 months old we went back to Riley and that is when they found out it closed on it's own. So I guess the only way to see how big the hole is when you take your son in and they determine what the size is. The the doctor will let you know what further more dtails will be done and what you need to do. All we know is when they found it in the beginning they told us when she went back in if it did not close then they would go into doing heart surgery or your child would be limited to doing sports in school. I hope this was some help to you and if anymore questions I'll be sure to answer them for you and goodluck as well. T.

My daughter, Alexis, had to have a physical before she went to the dentist since she was going to be put under. Well the doctor told me she had a heart murmur. She also went for the ultrasound of her heart and they said it's nothing t be worried about but being a mom that didn't register LOL A few weeks ago lexie was sick and I took her to the ER because she kept saying her heart hurt and was crying and holding her chest. I told the ER doctor she had a heart murmur and was having chest pains and when he listened to her chest he said he could barely hear her Murmur. Lexie's isn't causing any problembs, except for me worrying LOL All the doctors I have talked to have said that it's nothing to worry about and more than likely will go away.

It is natural for you to have concerns. My oldest daughter had a murmur at that age as well. We had the echo done and then even had to co see a pediatric cardiologist after that because they thought that there was something else going on as well. Turns out everything was okay and that murmur has never given her a bit of trouble. Once you have the echo done you will know what to do. Good Luck, you are both in our prayers.

When I was about 8 YEARS old (not months) I was diagnosed with a heart murmur during pre-op for a surgery! My mom all but freaked out! She didn't want for me to get the surgery or anything. The doctor expained just as you did and that mine was very small. (that did not matter to my mom) We went on with the surgery with no complications and now everytime I go to a new doctor of any kind I am told that I need to let them know. Honestly I do not know why, because after about 5 or 6 years no doctor heard it at all and now I'm 23 and it is still gone. In my case it disappeared (my husband and his sister also had heart murmurs that went away)
Anything that happens to(or is 'out of the ordinary' with)your baby is scary. Also, others may have different stories--but keep in mind--your story may not turn out to be the worst :)
Best Wishes!

My father has a heard murmur and he's healthy, exercises alot and is all together fine :).

Hi C.,

It is probably nothing serious. A lot of people have been diagnosed with murmurs, but does not affect them adversely. My son was diagnosed with a heart murmur at birth, but this hole was in a place that was difficult to get to and they said it would probably not close on its own without surgery. So far however, with monthly monitoring by a pediatric cardiologist, he has noticed scar tissue growing over the hole in the shape of a wind-sock which is standard. My son is also much smaller than his twin brother, probably due to the heart condition, so monitor your childs eating and growth which I'm sure that you and your doctors are. I would say to you, do not worry until they give you a REAL reason to, which I am sure that they will not. I'll send up a prayer for your son. Don't Worry, he'll be fine! :)

A. H.

I got the same news when my little girl was born 9 months ago. She had the echocardiogram. They said she would grow out of it. She has been checked since and they were right its gone. Keep the faith!

I just came across your post. I'm so glad to hear that everything is ok. My daughter just went through that. We knew since birth she had a murmur, but then at the 6month visit they said it sounded "more harsh." I did research like you, but still was nervous. They told us to get the ECHO, but we didn't have insurance. We had everyone pray, and at her 9month visit, the murmur sounded normal again. Though we still have to monitor it, at least it sounds better.
The worst part about the experience, was that we were told that since she had heart problems she was going to be denied health insurance. I was furious! luckly, it sounds better, and she can get on our insurance!
I hope that your son's murmur continues to heal! It's terrifying, I know, but it sounds like it is healing.

My mom and my younger brother have had heart murmurs the doctors have known about since birth, and have never had a problem. Mine was not discovered until I was in a college aerobics class, when, every time I reached 30 minutes of really intense aerobics, I would pass out. The doctors first said I had a murmur, and have said since that it's mitral valve prolapse-- I'm not sure if they're the same or not, but that's the only complication I've had, and I only know one other person who this happens to.

My son also has a murmur. We went to the specialist & was told it was 'innocent'. Every time we go to the DR for check ups, I have them listen. So far, it's still there. We go back to the specialist in June. I've done a lot of reading & researching & since it's considered innocent, he should grow out of it. Have you went to the specialist yet?

My daughter was diagnosed with a heart murmur around 6 months of age....we took her for the same test....and the dr told us it was nothing in our case....I had a heart murmur my entire life. Our ped can still hear Rachel's sometimes when she is sick, but nothing else has happend with it. So just pray that its nothing, and I wish the best to you!

My sister is 30 and has had one all her life. She's had no problems--she even has two kids of her own. She's had many tests done and no one recommended surgery or anything. I don't know much else about it other than they just told her to keep doing what she's doing.

My husband and I just went through this a few months ago, and our daughter is 2 1/2, so I can only imagine what you are going through with an 8 month old. Worst case scenario is that they might find that the cause is a small hole, and if it is that they will schedule your son for surgery to repair it. I know that's scary, but it's better to fix it now while your son is young. More than likely, if it was that, they would have found it at birth, so I wouldn't worry about that so much. I was told that more often than not when a child has a murmur, it's minor and it might have come from them having something as small as a cold. Most times they go away as the child ages, and it doesn't affect their quality of life...trust me, my daughter is a very hyper active girl and she's not slowed down a bit. Just make sure that your son is sleepy before the test because it takes about an hour, and just stay calm so your baby won't get scared. I know exactly how you feel...our daughter is our everything and we get scared over a bump on her head, so we were beside ourselves with worry. I know it's tough, but chances are it's going to be nothing, just a flow murmur.

I had a baby that had a heart murmur...by the time she was 2 months old it was gone. By the time she was 5 months old it was back. By the time she was 6 months old it was gone. By the time she was 8 months old it was back. By the time she was 9 months old it was gone and it never came back. Sometimes it just has to do with growth. Part of the heart might grow faster than other parts. My ex-boyfriend's mother had a heart murmur all of her life. She lived a perfectly normal life despite the heart murmur and didn't have to alter any of her activities or anything. Then there are the ones that the heart murmur is really bad and they need surgery. I can't tell you not to worry because I was worried. Go for the echocardiogram, talk to the doctor and get his honest opinion on the situation, then go see another doctor and see if his opinion is the same. If not then see a third doctor and so on until you get a matching opinion from 2 or more doctors. Then you can sit down and really evaluate the situation. Good luck and I so hope that it's a growth thing.

My 7 week old daughter also has a heart murmur. We did the echochardiogram also. It showed one of two types of defect. One will heal on it's own and the other may require surgery. So far she is a happy and healthy baby. I know how scared you are right now. Just remember that when you go for the echo, you won't get the results for a while. It tooks us almost a week to get the results. We have an appointment with the pediatric cardiologist, but not till the end of the month. It's just a waiting game at this point. I would recommend seeing a pediatric cardiologist, you want somebody that specializes in little ones. If there is a serious problem at the echo, they will admit your son to the hospital immediatley. If they let you go home, you'll have a follow up with your ped and they may schedule more tests. We have to have and EKG and a chest X-ray. I have heard from numorous people that lots of times the murmur goes away on it's own. I wish you and your son the very best. We'll keep you in our prayers. Let us know how it turns out.

My 2 y/o son was born with a heart murmur and we went through it all. I did the echo. kept up with my appointments and tried to limit activity. But as most Doctors will tell you they will fix themselves. More children every year are born with murmurs that are never found and they somehow heal all on their own. Good Luck! I too was once there and I know all the things that run through your mind. You never want to hear that anything could be wrong with your perfect little baby.

I went to the ultrasound with my sister when she found out that my niece was going to have a congenital heart defect. Her heart is abnormally shaped, she has 2 holes in it, and pulmonary hypertension. What is amazing is that the heart has adapted and repaired itself. One of the holes has dissapeared, and the other is getting smaller. She is a happy healthy 14 month old now. The cardioligist doesn't even think that surgery is necessary.

My advice would be to keep her monitored. Everything will probably turn out fine.

Hey C., I can't say what it is like to have a child with a murmur, but I had one until 16. I totally grew out of it and had no problems at all. I hope all goes well with your son.

A.

My oldest child was found to have a heart murmur when she was 12 years old...it was checked out and found to be minor and is not a threat to her health overall.

My 15 year old was diagnoised with a more substancial heart murmur that could be felt by resting your hand on his chest. This was when he was 4 years old. He has grown out of it and they can no longer find it on any test.

Both children are healthy, the 15 year old plys football and basketball and walks everywhere or bikes if his bike isn't broke. Don't panic just yet...it could be something as minor as what we had...and I had a friend who's child had a murmur found when he was 13 years old. He had surgery to repair it and he is a big strapping young man of 19 now. Murmurs are more common then people know...just take a deep breath and be glad that it was found so early so if interventions are needed they can be done now...rather then after a problem has occured. Good Luck and God Bless.
K.