What to expect at your health care provider's office:

The health care provider will usually discover a heart murmur during a physical examination. You may or may not have been aware of its presence. The physical examination will include careful attention to heart sounds.

The doctor may ask the following questions:

• Have other family members had murmurs or other abnormal heart sounds?
• Is there any family history of heart problems?
• What other symptoms do you have, such as:
  • Bluish skin color (cyanosis)
  • Chest pain
  • Distended neck veins
  • Fainting (syncope)
  • Liver enlargement
  • Lung sound changes
  • Shortness of breath
  • Swelling
  • Weight gain

Diagnostic testing to determine the cause of a "new" murmur or other abnormal heart sound may include:

• Chest x-ray
• ECG
• Echocardiography