LISTENING TO HEART SOUNDS SKIN

Aortic regurgitation means the aortic valve doesn’t close properly, allowing blood to backtrack into the ventricle. Aortic regurgitation - the aortic valve separates the aorta (main artery of the body) from the left ventricle.Some of the causes of mitral regurgitation include rheumatic heart disease, infection (endocarditis) of the mitral valve, hypertension (high blood pressure) and congenital defects of the heart. Mitral regurgitation means the mitral valve doesn’t close properly, allowing blood to backtrack into the atrium. Mitral regurgitation - the mitral valve separates the left atrium from the left ventricle.The passage of blood inside the heart or vessels may be blocked, or the blood travels abnormally through the heart valves, or the heart itself may be underdeveloped. Congenital heart disorders - sometimes, during fetal development, the heart and blood vessels fail to grow properly.This can be triggered by a range of conditions including: However, a heart murmur may also be caused by faulty blood flow within the heart. The murmur may be heard only because the vibration in the blood travelling through the heart is greater than usual, or the heart is closer to the front of the chest and the stethoscope. It is then pumped into the lower left chamber (left ventricle) and then into the body’s main artery (the aorta), where it starts its journey around the body again.Ī heart murmur is usually innocent, and generally does not mean there is an abnormality. Oxygenated blood enters the left upper chamber (left atrium). From there, the blood is taken by an artery to the lungs where the carbon dioxide is replaced with oxygen. The right upper chamber (right atrium) takes in deoxygenated blood from the body and squeezes it into the right lower chamber (right ventricle). The heart is a double pump consisting of four chambers, each sealed by valves that only permit blood to flow in one direction.

LISTENING TO HEART SOUNDS SKIN

Cyanosis (blue tinge to the skin caused by lack of oxygen).

The presence of heart disease may be suggested by:

Commonly, they are innocent and are only detected during a routine medical examination.Ībnormal heart murmurs may be associated with various types of heart disease, particularly those affecting the heart valves. Heart murmurs are themselves often asymptomatic (have no symptoms). However, medical tests are often needed to distinguish between a harmful heart murmur and an innocent one, as they can sound the same through a stethoscope. Many children have ‘innocent’ heart murmurs that don’t require any treatment or observation. A ‘noisy’ heart isn’t always a sign of disease or malfunction. The cause of the whooshing sound is the vibration of blood as it moves through the heart, which is normally undetectable by stethoscope.īlood can flow abnormally through the heart for many reasons including defective valves, congenital heart disorders and anaemia. Instead of ‘lub-dub’, the heartbeat may have an added sound like a hum, a whoosh or a rasp. A heart murmur is a sound caused by blood flow within the heart. The familiar ‘lub-dub’ sound of the heartbeat is caused by the rhythmic closing of the heart valves as blood is pumped in and out of the chambers.

Listening to heart sounds