Referred to a cardiologist for a Stills Murmur?

[mamamoon89]

At my daughters 2 year old check-up, her nurse practitioner said that she has a Stills Murmur and referred us to a cardiologist. I googled this later, and read that Stills Murmurs are benign, require no treatment, etc. and when I called the doctors office they confirmed this. I asked about why we need to see a cardiologist then, and the medical assistant told me that it was just to make sure nothing was wrong (couldn't have figured that one out for myself). I called the cardiologists' office and asked what the appointment would consist of and they told it would include an EKG and echocardiogram.

Does anyone know if there are potential harmful side effects from echocardiograms (a type of ultrasound) after birth...I know there is speculation about unnecessary prenatal ultrasounds maybe being harmful.

Also, has anyone else been told their child had a Still's Murmur? Were you referred to a cardiologist? If so, what was your experience with that?

[Swandira]

My oldest son had a Still's murmur when he was a toddler, and I was sent to a pediatric cardiologist for confirmation that that's what it was. He had one appointment during which they did an EKG and the doctor listened to him. The doctor then said it was a "classic Still's murmur," and reminded me that it would not affect my son's life and not to worry about it at all. He's had no ill effects and his pediatrician says now it seems to be resolved -- it goes away as they grow in size. My pediatrician did her residency in pediatric cardiology, so she said if I didn't have really good insurance she wouldn't have sent me to the specialist at all, because she was quite sure it was benign, but since it cost me nothing but a trip to Children's Hospital I was happy to have a second pair of ears listen to him. 

Hope this helps!

Nealy

Mama to Thales, 8; Lydia, 4; and Odin, 2

[Ellie'sMom]

I'm a nurse practitioner. It is standard of care to refer children to cardiology when a murmur is first noted. As primary care providers, we are not expert at heart sounds. She probably told you it is a Still's murmur, because that's really what it sounds like (and they are very common in children that age), but it still needs to be confirmed by an expert. 

If you are hesitant to do the echo, ask the cardiologist if they are willing to just listen to your child's murmur, and then have a conversation about the necessity of the echo. I recently referred a 2 year old for a suspected Still's murmur, and the report I got back from the cardiologist was just that he listened and confirmed a Still's murmur. No echo. Hopefully it didn't seem like a waste of time to the child's parents, but gave them the same peace of mind it gives me.

[ellairiesmom]

had an "innocent murmer" with both girls.  we had good insurance at the time so they said it was worth follow up w/ ped card just to rule out etc.  it was simple & non invasive.  it was at 3 mos each time & they did great.  it was right in his office & only took 10-15 mins or so.

it was reassuring to me to see my babes hearts on the screen, get shown all the different parts & be told how beautiful they were on inside (& out).  i had read all about it online but in the end, was happy to get the "proof" from a specialist that it was no biggie.

[starling&diesel]

First of all ... hugs to you. mama. 

It's so scary to think that there might be something wrong, benign or not, with your child's heart.

My DD was also diagnosed with an 'innocent' murmur.  Our ped referred us to the children's hospital heart clinic.  They did a 12 lead ECG and that was enough for them to confirm the diagnosis.  It was difficult to get dd to co-operate with the ECG.  I'd showed her what would happen to her by using her Bear and placing stickers in the right places.  What I also should've done was to add yarn or string cables, to prepare her for those.  She was fine with the stickers but was terrified of the cables (she called them 'scary snakes').

Also, the Children's Hospital techs doing the ECG (bless their hearts) were very happy-clappy-sing-sing-cheerful, which freaked dd out.  We had to stop the first time, because she was hysterical and totally overwhelmed by the bubbles, stickers, stuffies distraction chaos.  We went ahead with the cardiology consult.  He had a listen, and was confident about it being an innocent, if somewhat profound murmur.  I wasn't about to leave without the ECG.  I wanted to try again.  It had been a six week wait for the appointment, and I wanted to maximize all the tools to be sure that the murmur was nothing to worry about.

About an hour later, with dd calmed down , I asked if we could do it again, but this time dim the lights,  have the techs whisper, and let me explain to dd what was happening as I nursed her.  She nursed for the whole time (this is fine, the child just has to be still), and we kept the lights low and our voices low and calming.  That helped a lot.  

My best advice is if you decide to go for the ECG (which is great to have as a baseline should anything come up in the future), prepare your child as best you can.  Borrow a real stethoscope (I had one, I'm a paramedic), practice your pretend ECGs, and offer a special treat for after.  You know your child best ... for some, the cheerful, happy-clappy approach would be perfect, but my dd is a quiet, shy, anxious child who does best in a calm, mellow environment, and in mama's arms, preferrably nursing.  Have a plan, one that is best suited to your child.