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Heart Disease (Expert Forum)
chf - what happened
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chf - what happened
by jan, Feb 03, 2001 12:00AM
Almost 2 yrs. ago my mom died of chf. About 10 yrs. earlier she needed (and had) a mitral valve replacement and 2 bypasses, she was already in serious condition with chf when this was discovered. 4 mos. after her death I was diagnosed with IST, NCS, mild MVP w/mild MR, and mild TR. Since being diagnosed I have researched into these conditions with this forum's help and it leaves me with this question: Seeing my mom was dr'ing for other troubles why didn't they hear a murmur or have some clue before she was so bad? I know I don't have a murmur, but my leaks are mild, hers caused chf. Do you have any idea what might have happened?
Thank you, jan
Thank you, jan
Doctor's Answer
by Cleveland Clinic, MD, Feb 05, 2001 12:00AM
, Feb 05, 2001 12:00AM
Dear Jan,
Generally a severe leak will cause a heart murmur but the loudness of the murmur does not always correlate with the degree of severity. I don't know what happened in your mother's case but it is possible that the doctor heard a soft murmur and did not think it was significant. It is always difficult to play the "what if" game and it's hard to know if the outcome would have been different if this had been caught and treated earlier.
Generally a severe leak will cause a heart murmur but the loudness of the murmur does not always correlate with the degree of severity. I don't know what happened in your mother's case but it is possible that the doctor heard a soft murmur and did not think it was significant. It is always difficult to play the "what if" game and it's hard to know if the outcome would have been different if this had been caught and treated earlier.
