Can vet hear heart murmur?

[PamPittman]

Hi. Roxie was spayed Friday. I took her to a different vet other than her own, because my vet doesn't participate in the spay certificate that I had. Anyhow, they told me that she has a heart murmur (about a grade two). She's 6 months old and tiny. My question is, should my vet have picked up on this? Can you hear a grade two with a stethoscope, or only a heart monitor during surgery? Whenever my regular vet listens to her heart, I always asked specifically if it sounds ok. I've been considering changing vets, anyway. We only have 1 in our town. The spay vet was 45 minutes away. Wanted to have one that was close, for emergencies. Thanks in advance for advice! Pam Pittman

 

[SuzanneC]

Murmurs are graded on a 1-6 scale. It looks like this:

Grade 1 – a very soft murmur that can only be detected after very careful auscultation – the lowest intensity that can be heard

Grade 2 – a soft murmur that is readily evident (restricted to a localized area)

Grade 3 – a moderately intense murmur not associated with a palpable precordial thrill (vibration) – immediately audible when auscultation begins

Grade 4 – a loud murmur; a palpable precordial thrill is not present or is intermittent

Grade 5 – a loud cardiac murmur associated with a palpable precordial thrill; the murmur is not audible when the stethoscope is lifted from the chest wall

Grade 6 – a loud cardiac murmur associated with a palpable precordial thrill; the murmur is audible even when the stethoscope is lifted from the chest wall

Obviously, these are subjective. I can pick up a grade 2 most of the time, but since it's restricted to a localized area, it's possible to miss it. My advice to you would be to go with your gut. If you LIKE the vet that's near you, and think they do a good job, stick with them. If you're just lukewarm about them and find a vet you like better, there's nothing wrong with switching to the one you like best!

 

[PamPittman]

re: vet hearing heart murmur

Wow! Thanks! That's great info- I'm going to print it out as soon as I can get my printer going- I do like my vet, I've known him for about 20 yrs. But, I've never been entirely confindent in him as a vet. He's messed up quite a few times. I think it's time to change... It's a shame, too. He looks like Richard Gere Pam

 

[JulieM]

I would not take the murmur grading of a general practice vet as definitive; I've known gp vets who have graded dogs as 2 when a cardiologist could find no evidence of a murmur, and gp vets who have missed murmurs on dogs with grade 3. Personally, at six months with a possible grade 2 murmur I would probably take the puppy to a cardiologist, but I might wait until it was a year old, depending on the situation. I wouldn't be excessively worried, but it is a concern and could indicate a mild problem. Some murmurs tend to progress to maturity, as well, so I would definitely keep an eye on it.