HEART Q & A
Ask the
Cardiologist
BY Jennifer H. Mieres, M.D.
Readings differ arm to arm
Q: My blood pressure is
always lower in one arm
compared with the other. Is
this normal?
Beat Stronger. Live Longer.
A: Heart murmurs are sounds made by
turbulent blood flow in your heart. In adults,
disease of the heart valves is the most
common cause of an abnormal murmur. But
it isn’t the only cause.
There are two types of heart
murmurs: innocent murmurs and
abnormal murmurs. Most heart
murmurs are innocent and are caused
by blood flowing through healthy
valves in a normal heart. In adults,
abnormal murmurs are most often
due to problems with the heart valves.
The most common types of problems
include valve narrowing, which limits
the forward flow of blood, and valve
regurgitation, which happens when a
valve does not close completely and
allows backward flow (also called a
“leaky” valve).
Abnormal heart murmurs also
may occur in a normal heart because
of fever, pregnancy, and other
conditions that increase the amount
of blood moving through the heart.
Your doctor will most likely request
an echocardiogram to evaluate the
function of your heart and valves and
find the cause of your murmur.
Jennifer H. Mieres,
M.D., is director of
nuclear cardiology and
associate professor
of clinical medicine at
New York University.
A spokeswoman for
the American Heart
Association, she also
cowrote Heart Smart
for Black Women and
Latinas: A 5-Week
Program for Living a
Heart-Healthy Lifestyle
(St. Martin’s Press).
A: It’s common to have a small
difference in blood pressure between the
right and left arms, with a slightly higher
reading in your dominant arm.
The American Heart Association
recommends for doctors to take blood
pressure readings in both arms when
they first examine a patient. In general,
any difference of 10 mmHg or less is
considered normal and not a cause
for concern.
If your blood pressure is always higher
than 10 mmHg in one arm than the
other, your doctor will most likely order
additional tests to evaluate the
blood vessels of the arm that has the
lower pressure.
PHOTO: JUPI TERIMAGES
16
FYI
Every hour of television watched per day may increase the risk of dying earlier from heart
disease, according to the January 2010 issue of Circulation: Journal of the American Heart
Association. Those who watched more than four hours of TV a day were most at risk.
