6 year old daughter with heart issue?

[ptkds]

My 6 year old daughter was diagnosed with an "innocent" murmur as an infant. She has pulmonary valve stenosis. The last time she saw the cardiologist was when she was 4 and everything was fine. The murmur was still there, but her heart looked great. The dr said she didn't need to come back until she was 9.
She also has 2 bleeding disorders. At her regular check up with the hematologist, they did her vitals and her heart rate was in the 150's, even though she hadn't been doing anything to cause this. She was very calm and had not been running around. The nurse manually checked her pulse and said that her heart rate seemed to speed up and then slow down and then speed up again.
So I called the pediatrician the next day.They have ordered a halter monitor for her to wear one day this week. It will be put on her on Tuesday and worn until Wednesday.
Has anyone ever heard of this? Could this be related to her heart murmur? Please help me out! I'm so worried about her.

Thanks

[itdood]

First thing I thought of with the speeding up and slowing down is sinus arrhythmia.  It's normal, what it means is, the brain sends a signal to the heart to speed up when we breath in, then slow down when we exhale.  It helps with exchanging oxygen and carbon dioxide.  As the fresh air is going into the lungs the heart pumps more blood through to take advantage of the fresh air.  When we exhale the blood rate slows down through the lungs by slowing the heart down, this is to make sure that blood doesn't just pass through the lungs without getting exposed to fresh air.  

My son's (5) heart rate is fast too.  He's had a touch of bronchitis and we've been giving him nebulizer treatments (adreneline) and his rate is through the roof.  He doesn't blink an eye.  Hang in there!

[Jerry_NJ]

Wearing a monitor for 24 hours will give the doctor a good history of HR and should lead to an accurate evaluation of what is going on relative to this.

I think may have high heart rate and/or blood pressure when they are in a doctor's office.  This can be the case even if they look calm.  So a monitor at home, in the normal environment will remove this stimulus possibility.  The main problem may be to get you daughter to think about something else, to read and play as allowed given the monitor being on her body.   Will she be wearing it on a day off from school (a Saturday)?  I think that would be better as the stimulus of other children and classroom work/lessons could also cause a higher "resting" heart rate... I think.  I am a grandparent, so I have very little current experience in dealing with a 6 year old. In fact even my grandchildren are all over 10 years old.  

Being a parent is a serious effort, but one to enjoy.  Try to have confidence in your doctor(s) so that you can convey that positive sense to your daughter.   I firmly believe a positive outlook is one important component of a healthy heart and smooth heart rhythm.

[MichelleP_3811]

Children are known to have a more pronounced sinus arrhythmia than adults.  Everyone's heart beat changes between inhalation and exhalation.  The bigger the variation the more pronounce the arrhythmia is.  It is basically normal unless there is a super huge difference by say 30 bpm or more.  That said, children's hearts also tend to beat faster than adults as well though 150 does seem rather high.  It is possible she has an svt possibly wpw.  A cardiologist would have to be the one to diagnose this though.  It could be simple sinus tachycardia from a head cold or something as well.  So it is good you are getting her checked out.  That said, if it helps ease your mind, in the absence of shortness of breath, chest pain, dizziness or fainting your daughter is likely fine.  The reason for the tachycardia may need to be addressed but our hearts are pretty strong muscles that can take a lot and a 150 beat isn't as hard on the heart as one might think.  So be diligent about getting her checked out but try not to worry too much.  I am sure she will be just fine.  Take care and keep us posted on how she is doing.