What is a Grade 1 heart murmur?
A Grade I murmur is very soft or quiet, may only be heard intermittently, and is usually only heard in one location on the chest, while a Grade VI murmur is very loud, heard everywhere that the heart can be heard, and can be felt when a person places their hand on the chest in the area of the heart (in cardiac …
Do Grade 1 heart murmurs go away?
Soft heart murmurs (grade 1/6 to 2-3/6) can occur in young animals and are of no consequence to them. These types of murmurs are called “innocent” murmurs. They are soft and usually go away by 14 weeks of age.
What is a Grade 1 heart murmur in cats?
Why does my cat have a Grade 4 heart murmur?
We grade murmurs on a scale of 0 to 6, so a 4 is significant. There are a few possible reasons for a cat to have a murmur. Sometimes it can actually be present because of dental disease. When a cat has dental disease there can be a buildup of bacteria in the mouth.
What does it mean when your heart is murmuring?
The loudest murmurs, suggesting more turbulence of the blood flow, can be heard over a wider area of the heart. Importantly, the significance of heart murmur does not depend just on the loudness: some quiet murmurs can indicate very serious disease, while some louder murmurs may be relatively benign.
Can a cat with a heart murmur have surgery?
An ultrasound will allow a vet to take a long look at the issue and determine whether or not it is a legitimate concern. Your cat may be cleared for surgery at this point, but a high-risk murmur may also rule out surgery as a safe option.
What are the stages of heart disease in cats?
There are also various stages of heart disease and congestive heart failure in cats that veterinarians use to determine severity: Asymptomatic: Heart disease in cats is detected, but there is a lack of any outward signs. Additionally, a heart murmur in cats or arrhythmia may also be present.
What to do if your cat has a heart murmur?
There is no special treatment for heart murmur. If your vet detects heart murmur, your cat should be reexamined in 3 months. The vet will perform an ultrasound and an ECG exam, to determine if there is a cardiac condition causing the murmur.
What is the life expectancy of a cat with heart disease?
Feline hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a dangerous condition that refers to the thickening of the lower chambers, or ventricles, in a cat’s heart. The average life expectancy for a cat that suffers from this disease is under eight hundred days, and it is rare for an affected cat to live longer than four years.
What does a heart murmur mean for Your Cat?
Heart murmurs are very common in cats. A heart murmur means that in addition to the normal lub-dub heart sounds, a vet can also hear extra sounds when listening with a stethoscope. This can indicate an irregularity with blood flow between the heart’s valves , which could affect oxygen and nutrients levels as blood is pumped around the body.
How serious are heart murmurs in cats?
Heart murmurs in cats are very serious and usually an indication of cardiomyopathy . This disease used to be a death sentence within months of diagnosis. Treatments have come a long way in the last few years.
