Murmurs?

Hi Everyone,
well it's been a month since I had my first PM implanted and besides a little discomfort I thought I was doing really well.
I had to go in to see my regular MD yesturday and she listened to my heart and said I have a murmur. Well this threw me off guard bc I never had a murmur before. She thinks it might be due to the PM wires or the scarring over the wires. I have and ecocardiogram scheduled soon to see what might be causing this murmur.
I am writing this bc I am confused as to why this would be happening now. Have any of you been daignosed with a murmur after a PM implant and if so what caused yours?
Thank you,
Bini

4 Comments

Murmurs after PM

by BABlocker - 2007-07-27 08:07:34

As a matter of fact, I also developed a heart murmur after pacemaker implantation. My cardiologist states that it is common for this to occur.

As far as I know, in a healthy and structurally normal heart, a murmur is benign, and does not affect heart function.

Hi, bini,

by Gellia2 - 2007-07-27 11:07:09

I believe that a murmur may be caused by the wires going down through the valve into the lower chambers of the heart. They allow a small amount of blood to "backwash" thereby causing a murmur or heart sound.
As BABlocker says, it can be a common occurance after pacemaker implantation.
It's good to have it checked out, though. A baseline echocardiogram is always a good idea.
Best of luck to you.
Gellia

Mumurs

by SMITTY - 2007-07-27 11:07:40

Hello Bini,

My comments are not really necessary as I think Gellia and BA did an excellent job of explaining heart mumurs. However, I put my comments together before I was aware of what you already had so I'll post my comments anyway. I hate to throw away work without at least offering it for whatever good it may be to someone.

First, for those that have heard of heart murmur most of our lives but never bothered to see just what they are the excerpt from an article on heart mumurs shown below may provide a little information for you as it did me.

What Is a Heart Murmur?
A heart murmur is an extra or unusual sound heard during your heartbeat. Murmurs range from very faint to very loud and sometimes sound like a whooshing or swishing noise. Normal heartbeat sounds—"lub-DUPP" or "lub-DUB"—are the valves closing as blood moves through the heart. )

A heart murmur is not a disease; it is a sound that the doctor hears with a stethoscope. It may be normal, or it could be a sign that something may be wrong. Most heart murmurs are harmless. Some are signs of heart problems, especially if other signs or symptoms of a heart problem are present.

Types of Murmurs
Innocent (harmless) murmurs
A person with an innocent murmur has a normal heart and usually has no other signs or symptoms of a heart problem. Innocent murmurs are common in healthy children.

Abnormal murmurs
A person with an abnormal murmur usually has other signs or symptoms of a heart problem. Most abnormal murmurs in children are due to heart defects present at birth. In adults, abnormal murmurs are most often due to heart valve problems caused by infection, disease, or aging.

From what I understand about our pacemakers on how they might cause a murmur; I know that most of us with a dual lead pacemaker will have a lead going from the atrium to the ventricle by way of a valve opening. I am guessing it is this little wire going through that valve opening, which the valve must continue to use, that can cause a different blood flow pattern which results in the heart sounds being called call a murmur.

I'm glad you asked the queston because now I have a better knowledge of what causes a heart mumur.

Smitty

Thank you

by bini - 2007-07-28 03:07:28

Thank you all for commenting. I was at first really nervous thinking that this is not a common thing with PM's. So hearing from all of you eases my mind! I have my Echo scheduled for august 6th. I would assume this would be an innocent murmur.
Anyway, again thank you all for being so very helpful!
Bini

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