A normal heart sound has two rhythms. If you listen to it, the sound is like a repeating "lup-dup". This sound comes from the activity of the heart valves which open and close as blood flows through the heart.
Normal heart sounds can be heard clearly when the doctor performs an examination using a stethoscope. Heart sounds can be a measuring tool to determine a person's health condition, especially heart health.
Where Do Normal Heart Sounds Come From?
The anatomy of the heart consists of 4 chambers, namely the right and left atria at the top, and the right and left ventricles at the bottom. At each entrance and exit of the atria or ventricles there are small valves that function to regulate blood flow.
In general, the sound of a heartbeat comes from:
- The tension in the tissue that connects the valves and the heart muscle
- The vibrations that occur when the heart valves open and close
- Very fast and high pressure blood flow in the heart
Normal or abnormal heart sounds can usually be detected when a person is doing a physical examination of the heart, for example when medical check-up or general physical examination. If your heart sound doesn't sound "lup-dup" or is accompanied by additional heart sounds, you may have a heart problem.
Causes of Abnormal Heart Sounds
Normal heart sounds should sound clean without any additional sound. If there is an additional sound other than a “loop-dup”, the heart sound is said to be abnormal. One form of abnormal heart sound is a heart murmur or what is known as a heart murmur.
Heart murmurs can be heard if the heart valves do not close or open properly. In addition, a deformity of the heart that interferes with the flow of blood within the heart can also cause these additional sounds.
Here are some causes of abnormal heart sounds that you need to know about:
Congenital heart disease
Congenital heart disease is the most common factor causing heart murmurs, especially in children. Examples of cardiac deformities in congenital heart disease that trigger abnormal heart sounds are atrial septal defects and ventricular septal defects.
Although not always cause symptoms, most of these conditions must be treated specifically through surgery or even a heart transplant.
heart valve disease
Heart murmurs are often caused by heart valve disease, which causes the heart valves to not work properly. However, heart murmurs can also occur due to increased blood flow across the heart valves, for example, due to anemia and hyperthyroidism.
Other abnormal heart sounds that can occur are: friction rub and gallop. Friction rub or friction sounds usually indicate inflammation of the pericardium (the membrane that covers the heart). Temporary gallop or a heart sound resembling the galloping of a horse usually indicates heart failure.
How to Maintain Heart Health
To always maintain a normal heart sound, you must maintain a healthy heart by adopting a healthy lifestyle, namely by doing the following things:
- Do exercise regularly at least 30 minutes a day, either by walking, exercising, or cycling.
- Consumption of fiber foods such as fruit, vegetables, or whole grains at least 30 grams every day to reduce the risk of coronary heart disease.
- Stop smoking and excessive alcohol consumption.
- Reduce excessive salt consumption, to avoid high blood pressure.
- Maintain an ideal body weight, because the risk of heart problems will increase if you are overweight.
It is difficult to distinguish between normal and abnormal heart sounds without the use of a stethoscope. However, some people can indeed feel a different heartbeat.
Even so, to determine the cause of abnormal heart sounds, further examination is still needed from a doctor, for example with echocardiography to see blood flow or a CT-scan of the heart to see the anatomical condition of the heart.
If you suspect that there is an abnormality in your heart sound or you have symptoms that suggest a heart problem, such as shortness of breath or chest pain, see your doctor immediately.