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Grandmother died of unknown cause...
Hi,
I am a thin healthy 25/F and the the only known condition I suffer from is anxiety. I was recently diagnosed with a grade 1 systolic heart murmur at the left sternal edge during a routine physical. I had an echo done and they told me it was totally fine, just some trivial tricuspid regurg, but only to worry about. They told me there would be no follow-up.
My only concern is that my grandmother died in her early 50's of what I have been told was asthma, but nobody talks about it much. I was just wondering if she could have been misdiagnosed with asthma and there is some sort of cardiomyopathy in my family that could have been missed on the echo? I have read about apical HCM and that it can be missed?? There is no other known heart disease in my family and I am asymptomatic.
Thanks.
I am a thin healthy 25/F and the the only known condition I suffer from is anxiety. I was recently diagnosed with a grade 1 systolic heart murmur at the left sternal edge during a routine physical. I had an echo done and they told me it was totally fine, just some trivial tricuspid regurg, but only to worry about. They told me there would be no follow-up.
My only concern is that my grandmother died in her early 50's of what I have been told was asthma, but nobody talks about it much. I was just wondering if she could have been misdiagnosed with asthma and there is some sort of cardiomyopathy in my family that could have been missed on the echo? I have read about apical HCM and that it can be missed?? There is no other known heart disease in my family and I am asymptomatic.
Thanks.
QUOTE: "Thanks for your help. So if they couldn't see the borders properly than the technician would suggest an MRI?? In what cases would they be hard to visualize? I'm very thin - 5'5 and 110 lbs so you would think my echo window would be good? I have no other medical conditions.
Thanks,
>>>>There should be an output report generated by the echo software, and the technician has some subjectivity involved in establishing the parameters. I had an echo and the operator took the time to explain what was happening at each step examination. The echo is examining a moving object (heart walls) and the border of the wall is fuzzy due to the motion of the wall. The transducer locks in at an estimate of the outer parameter. Its logical to believe there is some knowledge of the heart's anatomy and a doctor should know if there is or is not an anomaly based on the report also the recorded echo can be re-examined. It would be the doctor who would want an MRI for something that is questionable or inconclusive with the echo.
Thanks,
>>>>There should be an output report generated by the echo software, and the technician has some subjectivity involved in establishing the parameters. I had an echo and the operator took the time to explain what was happening at each step examination. The echo is examining a moving object (heart walls) and the border of the wall is fuzzy due to the motion of the wall. The transducer locks in at an estimate of the outer parameter. Its logical to believe there is some knowledge of the heart's anatomy and a doctor should know if there is or is not an anomaly based on the report also the recorded echo can be re-examined. It would be the doctor who would want an MRI for something that is questionable or inconclusive with the echo.
Thanks for your help. So if they couldn't see the borders properly than the technician would suggest an MRI?? In what cases would they be hard to visualize? I'm very thin - 5'5 and 110 lbs so you would think my echo window would be good? I have no other medical conditions.
Thanks,
Jacqueline
Thanks,
Jacqueline
It is true some echocardiographers may fail to not properly note a visual image of the area in question. If the apex is not clearly seen, the transducer controlled by the echocaridographer would not be able to measure the dimensions by outling the borders of a mass (no clear delineation). Then an MIR would be the appropriate test if cause to believe there is a medical condition.
oh i've just read somewhere that apical HCM (a rarer form of the disorder) can be missed on TTE sometimes due to poor visualization of the apex. but then again if you say an echo can measure cardiac output too....probably is okay.
About 72% of murmurs heard by a stethoscope are innocent murmurs and of no medical signiicance. However, valve disorders should be ruled out. It appears by your echo report there is no structual abnormalities.
An echocardiogram should be able to detect hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. HCM is an enlargement of the heart walls and the echo measures dimensions. Also, HCM would impede an adequate flow of blood into circulation, and that would cause symptoms of shortness of breath, fatigue, chest pain, etc., and cardiac output can be measured with an echo. I'm not sure how it could be missed?
An echocardiogram should be able to detect hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. HCM is an enlargement of the heart walls and the echo measures dimensions. Also, HCM would impede an adequate flow of blood into circulation, and that would cause symptoms of shortness of breath, fatigue, chest pain, etc., and cardiac output can be measured with an echo. I'm not sure how it could be missed?
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