Heart Murmur

Specialties Pediatric

Published

Specializes in Maternal - Child Health.

My neighbor took her daughter to the ped for her 5 year old check up last fall. The ped heard a heart murmur which had not been previously detected. She told my friend to bring the child back for a re-check in 6 months.

Last week the child fell and cut her scalp and was taken to the ped's office. The doctor declined to do the sutures in the office and sent her to the ER. She returned to the ped's office today to have the staples (staples in the scalp...Yeech!) removed and my neighbor asked the doc to listen to the child's heart again. She still hears the murmur, and now is concerned enough to order a cordiology consult. The ped asked my neighbor if she was SURE that no one had ever heard a murmur before. My neighbor replied that she was the only ped her daughter had ever seen! The child is a perfectly healthy, active 5 year old with no history of any serious illness.

Any ideas what this murmer might be? Should she have been given antibiotics for the scalp sutures? I advised my neighbor to ask her ped if antibiotics were warranted prior to dentist visits, as this had not been mentioned. Of course, the earliest available cardiology appointment is months away! Thanks for your input.

Specializes in Pediatric Rehabilitation.

jolie,

not ignoring you, just don't know the answer....

..was hoping someone else did...

i guess not :( sorry

tracy

My son developed a murmur at age 6 or 7. He was evaluated by a pediatric cardiologist who explained that murmurs can occur when a child is sick especially with a fever. In my sons case, the murmur was benign caused simply by a strong heart. Most murmurs in children are the benign kind but always good to get checked because there could possibly be a dangerous reason for the murmur such as a congenital heart defect. (aortic stenosis, coarctation of the aorta ect) I would think, though, that the murmur would have been picked up earlier if it were caused by a congenital defect. More likely benign! Hope everything turns out well.:cool:

Specializes in Cardiothoracic nursing.

Well... in my opinion your neighbour must have the confirmation about the origin of the murmur. It can be innocent (benign) , but ... only with a ecocardiogram we despite it, ok? So, try a ped cardiologist.

i hope your friend has seen a peds cardiologist by now. i work in a peds cardiology clinic 2 days a week. we get a lot of kids in with new heart murmurs which are benign but it is always reassuring to have it checked by a peds cardiologist. plus as he gets older he'll have to have it checked so he can play sports in school. usually they do an ekg and a 2-d doppler study.

Specializes in ICU.

My daughter was diagnosed with a Still Murmur at age 3. Was never there before and was aggravated with being sick...it is a benign little thing but a bit worrisome for me! :) Anyway, she is just fine. She had a consult with a Ped cardiologist who put me at ease.

The second parts of your question has me wondering why you would think antibiotics are warranted for sutures or the dentist...??

Originally posted by RNonsense

My daughter was diagnosed with a Still Murmur at age 3. Was never there before and was aggravated with being sick...it is a benign little thing but a bit worrisome for me! :) Anyway, she is just fine. She had a consult with a Ped cardiologist who put me at ease.

The second parts of your question has me wondering why you would think antibiotics are warranted for sutures or the dentist...??

Just about anything that causes a disturbance in the normal structure of the heart warrents considering abx pre-proceedure (esp dental care, GU & GI proceedures)...murmers, valve replacements, s/p open heart etc...the person is at inceased risk for bacterial endocarditis.

Specializes in ICU.

How common are innocent murmurs?

Innocent murmurs are very common! Some pediatric cardiologists estimate a heart murmur can be heard in 90 percent of children with anatomically normal hearts between the ages of 4-7 years.

What if my child has a murmur that is not innocent?

Even if your child has been diagnosed with a heart murmur that is due to a structural problem of the heart, this does not necessarily mean that your child will require heart surgery.

Some murmurs are due to small holes between the two lower chambers of the heart. These holes do not get bigger and often close by themselves.

Other murmurs are due to narrowing or leaking of one of the valves of the heart, however this may be mild.

For many of these minor problems, the only precaution that needs to be observed is to take a dose of antibiotics before he or she goes to the dentist. Many children with structural heart disease lead normal active lives, get married and have children.

Our dentist asked about the presence of a heart murmur in our child. What does that mean?

If your child has been diagnosed with an innocent murmur, no special precautions need to be taken for dental procedures or other invasive medical procedures since your child has a structurally normal heart.

However, people who have structural disease of the heart (such as a hole in the heart or an abnormal heart valve) are at higher risk for developing an infection of the heart (endocarditis) following routine teeth cleaning and other dental procedures such as fillings.

Endocarditis can also develop following invasive medical procedures (for example, procedures that use a lighted scope to examine the stomach, colon or bladder).

Taking appropriate antibiotics as directed by your doctor or dentist at the time of these procedures can prevent endocarditis.

If your child requires antibiotics for such procedures because of a heart condition, your pediatric cardiologist will give you a card that specifically lists the type of antibiotics and dose schedule required.

It is very important that these recommendations be followed, as endocarditis is a serious infection that can be fatal.

Contact Cincinnati Children's Heart Center

For more information about pediatric heart-related services, please contact Cincinnati Children's Heart Center through e-mail ([email protected]) or by calling the Division of Cardiology, 513-636-4432, or the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, 513-636-4770.

Wow...thanks for the info kids-r-fun. As I mentioned, my daughter has a murmur and I was never told that...and she has been to the dentist already many times! I looked this up on the net after I saw your reply :)

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