Child's heart murmur

Murmurs in the heart of a child are not always a sign of a pathological process. In order not to panic, parents need to know what this phenomenon means and whether treatment is needed. This problem most often worries the parents of the baby. This is not always dangerous, but the phenomenon cannot be ignored: it is necessary to establish the cause in order to exclude or confirm the pathology and begin therapeutic measures.

The main causes of the symptom

The reasons why children may experience heart murmurs are divided into several groups:

1. The first includes noises, the causes of which lie in diseases of the cardiovascular system acquired or received from birth.
2. The second includes the features of the development of the child's heart. Such noises are called functional. They do not require treatment, as they will go away on their own over time.

Functional noises

Such noises are considered harmless. When the cardiovascular system reaches the peak of its development, they will completely disappear: no measures are needed for this. As the child grows older, the noises may become stronger or subside.

Regardless of the type of noise, in the presence of such a symptom, the observation of a cardiologist is necessary.

Infants and older children may experience the following noises:

• Buzzing. They are connected with how venous blood moves through the main vessels. Depending on what position the child takes, the noise intensifies or subsides. If the baby lies, then the noises absolutely disappear.
• transpulmonary acceleration. This sound is due to the fact that the lung tissue increases blood flow. The reasons for this are physical overstrain, arrhythmia or intoxication.
• Heart vibration. This sound is due to heart vibrations. Most often it is found in infants with a thin chest.
• Noises associated with the formation of the heart. They can occur if individual parts of the organ grow unevenly. Thus, the ventricle grows faster than the atrium.

There may also be murmurs due to myocardial tone. Most often, this problem occurs in adolescent children: when the heart reaches the required level of development, the pathology disappears.

If the metabolic processes in the myocardium are disturbed, this can cause certain sounds in the heart. Their doctor notices when listening to the heart of the child.

This issue occurs due to:

• with an unbalanced diet;
• with excessive physical activity;
• with the rapid development of the body;
• with slow growth of the heart itself.

This problem develops in children older than three years of age.

Changes in the heart muscle that can lead to the development of diseases are called cardiopathy. One of the signs of such a state is noise. This condition requires medical treatment.

If untreated, cardiopathy develops into severe forms of the disease. There may be not only metabolic disorders, but also myocardial dystrophy. Symptoms of the disease are noise and weakness.

These pathological conditions are well eliminated with the help of medicines. After treatment, the child does not feel any consequences. Ailments are not dangerous, even if a heart murmur is observed in a newborn.

Noises caused by pathology

A heart murmur in both a child and an adult may indicate the presence of a serious illness.

Such a heart murmur in a newborn may indicate a heart defect. Pathology can develop if circulatory disorders occur during fetal development.

Normally, there is an opening between the right and left atrium. This hole is called the oval window. During the first month of a baby's life, this window most often closes. But this can happen when the child is a year or two. In some cases, the closing of the window occurs up to six years. Because of this, a murmur in the heart of a newborn or an older child can be heard.

If at the same time there are other signs of disorders of the heart, then the child is diagnosed with heart disease due to the non-closure of the oval window.

Heart disease can be:

• congenital;
• acquired.

Congenital occurs if during pregnancy the child's body is affected by negative factors, for example, a woman uses alcohol or drugs.

Acquired heart disease in children develops under the influence of inflammatory processes in the body.

With heart disease, the child should periodically undergo instrumental examinations.

Diagnosis for heart murmurs

The very first method of diagnosing noise is listening. It must be carried out for all newborns, as it allows you to determine the pathology in time. If there is a heart murmur in a newborn, then an electrocardiogram is performed in a month. This method allows you to diagnose the causes of noise.

When a child's heart murmurs are caused by a pathology, which was confirmed by an electrocardiogram, Echo-KG is prescribed. During this procedure, the structure and functions of the cavities of the heart bag are studied.

There are also procedures such as:

1. Chest x-ray. This event allows you to determine the size and shape of the heart, whether there is pulmonary edema.
2. Blood tests to look for any abnormalities that could cause a heart murmur in both the child and the adult.
3. Cardiac catheterization. It is necessary if violations of the structure of the heart, its functions and blood circulation have been identified.

Principles of treatment and prevention

A heart murmur in both a newborn and children of any age requires diagnosis. After determining the causes, if necessary, prescribe treatment. The most common therapy is medication. Such treatment is necessary for heart disease in children.

Prescribe drugs to improve metabolic processes in the heart muscle.

Most commonly used:

• vitamins;
• glucosides;
• amino acids;
• in rare cases, hormonal drugs.

If heart failure in children continues to develop, then there may be a need for surgical intervention, during which the resulting defect will be eliminated.

Carry out the following operations to eliminate noise:

• Replace defective valves with artificial organs.
• Correct congenital defects.
• Remove tumors.

The rehabilitation process after surgery can take about two years. For children, bed rest is prescribed, but it is gradually necessary to increase the duration and intensity of physical activity, and blood thinners are also prescribed.

Non-dangerous heart murmurs in both the newborn and older children do not require preventive measures.

To avoid the occurrence of noises indicative of heart disease, you must:

1. Treat infectious diseases of the throat in time, as they lead to the development of rheumatism, which, in turn, causes heart problems.
2. Prevention of heart disease should be aimed at reducing the risk of atherosclerosis.
3. It is necessary to eat healthy food, eat less fried and fatty foods. The child's diet should be dominated by vegetables, fruits, lean meats and fish.
4. It is better to give the baby to some sports section. Regular exercise will help strengthen the heart and the whole body.
5. With hypertension and diabetes, it is necessary to start treatment on time.

A heart murmur in both a newborn and an older child does not always indicate a pathological process. They can also occur with increased stress on the heart. The reason for this may be high body temperature, anemia, pneumonia, any infection. After the elimination of these causes, the noise disappears.

In some cases, the noise goes away on its own, but this phenomenon requires immediate diagnosis. If the doctor did not find any abnormalities, then you can not register the child with a cardiologist. With congenital heart defects or acquired, the baby should be under the close supervision of a cardiologist.

To determine the treatment, the doctor takes into account the results of the studies and the condition of the child. If there are no other symptoms, and the child feels well, then there is no cause for concern.

If there are any violations, the doctor should tell the parents what to do in this situation. But there is no need to panic. Accurate implementation of the specialist's instructions will avoid complications and speed up the child's recovery process.