Bruit

Abnormal sound from turbulent arterial blood flow
Medical condition
English: /ˈbrt/, /ˈbri/[1][2]
SpecialtyCardiology

Bruit, also called vascular murmur,[3] is the abnormal sound generated by turbulent flow of blood in an artery due to either an area of partial obstruction or a localized high rate of blood flow through an unobstructed artery.[4]

The bruit may be heard ("auscultated") by securely placing the head of a stethoscope to the skin over the turbulent flow, and listening. Most bruits occur only in systole, so the bruit is intermittent and its frequency dependent on the heart rate. Anything increasing the blood flow velocity such as fever, anemia, hyperthyroidism, or physical exertion, can increase the amplitude of the bruit.

Etymology

It is naturalized from the French word for "noise", although another notes that /ˈbri/ and /brˈ/ are also common,[5] and others give only /ˈbri/ for the cardiac sense.[6][7]

Associated terms

Describing location of a partial obstruction

  • Peripheral vascular disease; femoral artery stenosis
  • Renal artery stenosis
  • Stroke, carotid artery stenosis
  • Aortic aneurysm
  • Tinnitus – a symptom which may be caused by a cranial artery bruit
  • Arteriovenous malformation
  • Coarctation of the aorta
  • Hepatocellular carcinoma
  • Alcoholic hepatitis

Describing the mechanism of a partial obstruction

Describing location of localized high blood flow

Unclassified

See also

References

  1. ^ Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, archived from the original on 2015-09-25, retrieved 2018-07-04.
  2. ^ Elsevier, Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary, Elsevier.
  3. ^ "bruit" at Dorland's Medical Dictionary
  4. ^ "vascular murmur" at Dorland's Medical Dictionary
  5. ^ Wolters Kluwer, Stedman's Medical Dictionary, Wolters Kluwer.
  6. ^ Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster's Medical Dictionary, Merriam-Webster.
  7. ^ Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, archived from the original on 2020-05-25, retrieved 2018-07-04.

External links

Classification
D
Look up bruit in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
  • American Heart Organization
  • v
  • t
  • e
Chest pain
Auscultation
Pulse
Other
Shock
Cardiovascular disease
Aortic insufficiency
Other endocardium
Pericardium
Other
Vascular disease
Arterial
Venous