Seattle Health Blog

Normal heart sounds are produced in pairs. Often described as a steady “lub-dub, lub-dub”. The first “lub-dub” is the sound of the mitral and tricuspid valves closing. The second “lub-dub” is the sound of the aortic and pulmonary valves closing shortly thereafter. But if there is a problem, apart from the “lub-dub” normal, there may be a blow. Listening to the heart with a stethoscope, the doctor can determine if the abnormal sound indicates turbulence. This is called a heart murmur.

Some heart murmurs are a harmless type called “functional murmur” or “innocent murmur”. They are common in children and require no treatment or changes in lifestyle. In most cases the functional murmurs disappear upon reaching adulthood.

While some heart murmurs are functional, others are symptoms of more serious heart problems. In these cases, the sound may indicate that blood flows through a heart valve that is damaged or makes excessive stress, which may have a hole in one wall of the heart or that there is a narrowing of blood vessels heart.