I am an 18 year old female and since i was a child I have had a heart murmur, this has never bothered me until a couple of months ago. Recently I have been experiencing pain in my chest as though someone is stabbing me constently and with it, my chest becomes tight and i struggle to breathe. This can happen both when doing physical activity and when relaxing. I am constently on the go and until experiencing this pain was always active playing lots of sport. I have been to the doctors and they said they couldn't hear the murmur at present, but they think it's a heart murmur which comes and goes. I have had a test done and they said that the heart murmur is caused by a leaky heart valve, Could the pain in my chest be caused by the leaky heart valve and is it anything to worry about?
Yes it could be caused by the leaky valve. A small leaky value generally presents with no symptoms. In my opinion if it is causing you symptoms and pain that were never present before it should be cause for concern and be investigated. The test they can do is an EKG and an echocardiogram. The echo will show the severity of the leak.
A leaky valve can cause the heart to overwork, by having to repump the same blood over and over again as it continues to leak back into the same chamber again. This does not allow the blood to circulate through all four chambers of the heart, and causes a decrease in oxygen being delivered to the body because of it. Shortness of breath, feeling faint, frequent urination, swollen feet and ankles, fatigue, heart murmur, chest pain, dizziness, heart palpitations are all symptoms of a leaky valve. If left untreated it can damage all the chambers of the heart or cause enlargement of the heart.
I recommend you see your doctor and get a referral to a Cardiologist so the tests can be run to determine the severity of your leaky valve.
I Hope This Helps, Good Luck and God Bless Brenda