How common are infant heart murmurs?

[decogrl]

Just got back from DD's 6 month appointment and it was discovered that she has a heart murmur.  How serious is it?  Doc did not seem to be concerned yet recommended I take her to a cardiologist.

Also, I was floored to discover that DD is 23lbs and 29" long.  She is off all the charts compared to other babies.  I don't know what to do with this girl....she eats ALL the time!

[Jaces312]

Heart murmur is not serious. Its just an irregular heartbeat. When i was younger, the doctors used to always say I had a heart murmur during the exam. I have had several cat scans and they would always come back normal. Once they do a scan on your baby, they can tell you whether or not its anything serious, but for MOST people its harmless.

[kbrownhh]

my dd had a heart murmor at either her 3 or 6 month visit.  Doc wasn't concerned at all and said he would listen next time and if he still heard it do an echo.  He never heard it again and she turns 3 this Friday.  He said it is very common in infants and they usually go away.

[Me2mommy2b]

http://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/health/heart-encyclopedia/signs/murmurs.htm

it is very common in infants.   The above is the link I found talks about it in details.  Wow, Ameera's a big girl :))))  Ariella is only 15 lbs and 5 oz and measures at 25 1/2 inches.

[ally76]

I wouldnt worry about your babys weight....every baby is different.  My girlfriends baby was such a chubber when she was little and now she is 1 and a half and totally perfect.  As soon as she starts crawling around she'll lose it.  I personally think chubby babys are adorable!!

[2ndBaby]

My DD has a murmur that was diagnosed as her pediatrician made his first visit with her in the hospital.  He monitored it closely, and I don't remember exactly how long it took, but it resolved itself.

[taysmommy]

more then likely she will be fine, my sister was born with 5 holes in her heart, she 7 now and all have closed but one, she has to visit a UCLA heart doctor once a year, and aside from that, it hasent caused any problems, im sorry i know thats a really scary situation, i wish you guys the best!

[kerryke]

I have learned that heart murmurs are really common.
My son, who is 4 now, had his discovered at his first 4 day checkup.
I can remember almost falling down when they told me because
it scared me so bad, I didnt even remember what the doctor said after
he told me initially.  It is a hole in the heart that kind of causes a whooshing
sound that the doctors can hear when they listen to their heart and breathing
with their stethoscope, and most of the kinds are fairly common and close
up on their own fairly quickly.  I was so worried that I got my son
into a pediatric cardiologist that day and he explained it all to me,
and that 95% of the time they close on their own, and most of them,
even if they dont close on their own would never bother a kid.  And,
in the most absolute extreme cases, surgery can correct it, so I left there
know that no matter what he would be okay, and I needed that.
Luckily, his closed on his own by six months.  It is devastating to hear something like that, but trust me, your baby will be fine and in our case,
it would have probably been easier on me to never have known.
But trust me, I listened to every single word the cardiologist said, and your baby will be fine.

[Aiimster]

My son has one and he is 6 months old. It was detected at 2 months but it has not gotten smaller. They have said it could take up to one year to close. We did an EKG and a chest xray and the doctor has said his heart is larger than it should be at this point so I have been referred to a cardiac peadiatrition. I am scared to death. Have any of you had this experience before? Where the heart was enlarged in addition to the murmur? I am from 3 very small islands and we do not have the equipment here to assess the status of this so I fly to Miami in a couple of days to get this done.