Austin Flint Murmur - Symptom, Causes, Treatment

An Austin Flint murmur is a mid-diastolic, low-pitched rumbling heard at the apex. It is a diastolic murmur majorly similar to that of mitral stenosis, heard at the cardiac apex in some cases of free aortic insufficiency. Austin Flint murmur is present in some cases of aortic insufficiency and is thought to be due to the vibration of the mitral valve caused by regurgitation of blood from the aorta into the heart before contraction of the ventricles. Austin Flint murmur is detected in cases of severe aortic regurgitation. The blood jets from the aortic regurgitation strike the anterior leaflet of the mitral valve, leading to a mid-diastolic, low-pitched rumbling best heard at the cardiac apex. Austin Flint murmur due to aortic regurgitation, originating at the mitral valve when blood enters simultaneously from both the aorta and the left atrium.

Causes of Austin Flint Murmur

The main causes of Austin Flint Murmur:

• Collision of the jet with mitral inflow.
• Increased mitral inflow velocity due to narrowing of the valve orifice by the jet.
• Vibration of the anterior mitral valve leaflet due to the regurgitant jet.

Signs and symptoms of Austin Flint murmur

Signs and symptoms often experienced with Austin Flint murmur are:

• Increased left atrial pressure.
• Low cardiac output.
• Sudden drop in coronary driving pressure.
• Hypotension.
• Increased filling pressure of the LV.
• Chest pain.

Treatment of Austin Flint Murmur

Some most common treatmet of Austin Flint Murmur:

• Intravenous hydralazine.
• Symptomatic patients with normal LV function may be treated safely with aggressive medical management with variable results, but no present data have provided for a significant role of medical therapy for patients with acute severe AI.
• This result may also be expected with the use of similar vasodilating agents.
• Oral prazosin.

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