What is a systolic murmur?

A systolic murmur occurs during the heart's systolic phase, which is the period when the heart ventricles contract and pump blood into the arteries. Murmurs are abnormal sounds that can occur due to turbulent blood flow within the heart. In the context of a systolic murmur, this turbulence arises specifically during the contraction of the heart muscle, leading to the characteristic sound.

Systolic murmurs can be further categorized into various types, such as those that are caused by physiological changes or structural abnormalities in the heart. Understanding when these murmurs occur is critical for diagnosis and may indicate conditions such as valvular heart diseases or septal defects.

This definition highlights the significance of the systolic phase in understanding the origin and implications of the murmur. It is important to differentiate between the phases of the cardiac cycle because other types of sounds or murmurs may arise during different phases, such as diastole, further emphasizing why the correct answer focuses specifically on the systolic phase.