Tests & Treatments for Heart Murmurs at University of Colorado Hospital

Tests for Heart Murmurs

Doctors use a variety of tests to detect heart murmurs and determine whether they are innocent or abnormal.

Physical Exam

Physical exam with a stethoscope to detect the loudness, location, pitch and length of the murmur.

Angiography

Angiography, or cardiac catheterization, to determine the pressure on the heart and the blood vessels feeding it.

Chest X-ray

Chest X-ray to reveal problems such as an enlarged heart.

Echocardiograph

Echocardiograph (ECHO) to identify areas of the heart that are contracting irregularly. The ECHO uses sound waves to create pictures of the heart.

Electrocardiogram

Electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) to determine the rate and regularity of the heartbeat. The ECG is administered with wires attached to the patient’s body. The wires detect electrical signals from the heart, which are recorded on a machine for the doctor’s review.

Stress Test

Stress test is an ECG administered to evaluate the rate regularity of the heartbeat during activity.

Treatments for Heart Murmurs

If a heart murmur is innocent, no treatment is required. If the murmur is abnormal, doctors treat the condition either through medication, minimally invasive procedures or through open heart surgery. The choice of treatment depends on the severity of the condition as well as the age of the patient.

Medication Treatments

Medications used to treat heart murmurs help to lower blood pressure, stop the progression of or prevent blood clots and treat or prevent inflammatory heart disease.

  • Diuretics remove excess salt and water from the body. This helps to lower blood pressure, which makes it easier for the heart to pump blood.
  • Antibiotics prevent or treat endocarditis, or inflammation of the lining of the heart.
  • Anti-inflammatory drugs treat pericarditis, or inflammation of the tissue that surrounds the heart.
  • Blood thinners prevent blood clots.
  • Vasodilators widen the blood vessels so that the heart can pump more easily.

Minimally invasive Treatments

Heart murmurs can sometimes be treated using catheters (long, thin tubes) to correct abnormalities in the heart, including:

Atrial septal defect – a hole in the wall (septum) between the two upper chambers (atria) of the heart that can cause irregular heartbeats and stretching of the right side of the heart.

Pulmonary valve stenosis – a narrowing of the valve in the artery that supplies blood to the lungs.

Surgical Options

Sometimes surgery is needed to correct abnormal heart murmurs. Open-heart surgery may be done to:

  • Close holes in the heart with stitches or a patch
  • Widen arteries or valve leaflets
  • Repair or replace heart valves