Mechanism of a musical systolic murmur caused by a degenerated porcine bioprosthetic valve

Abstract The cause of a musical (cooing) murmur produced by a degenerated bioprosthetic valve in the mitral position was investigated. Spectral analysis of the murmur recorded at the chest wall at the site of the maximum palpable impulse showed virtually all sound in a narrow frequency band around the dominant frequency of 158 hertz. The same valve, surgically removed and mounted in the mitral position in a pulse duplicating system, produced an audible musical murmur detected by a phonocatheter in the atrial chamber. Nearly all of the sound-pressure occurred in a narrow band of frequency around 145 hertz. High speed motion pictures (500 frames/s) showed systolic flutter of a flail leaflet. The frequency of this leaflet flutter was 142 hertz. Hot film anemometry showed minimal turbulence, all located near the margin of the regurgitant leaflet. The intensity of the murmur was unrelated to the intensity of turbulence. A second degenerated bioprosthetic valve that produced in vivo a typical blowing holosystolic mitral regurgitant murmur produced in vitro a murmur with a broad range of frequencies (20 to 500 hertz). With this valve, the intensity of the murmur was related to the intensity of the turbulence. Motion pictures showed no leaflet flutter. Flutter of an insufficient valve leaflet causing uniform and periodic high frequency fluctuating pressures therefore appeared to be the cause of the musical quality of the systolic murmur in a degenerated bioprosthetic valve.