Ablation w/ Natale tomorrow

Hi everyone,

I've been in read-only mode here for a while but wanted to say hello. I'm scheduled for an ablation with Dr Natale tomorrow. I'm a 42 yo M who has had paroxysmal AF off and on for the past 18 months. My AF just went persistent with an episode commencing July 7th which continues on in this moment. My rate is pretty low at 90-110 compared to what I've seen in other members but even still my symptoms are no fun when at their peak (dizziness occasionally to the point of nausea, fatigue & shortness of breath and just general unease when the heart is bouncing around).

This will be my first ablation and first significant surgical procedure of any kind. As such I'm a little nervous but the reassurances I've seen on this forum for other members and a few hours of conversations with Shannon over the past year have really set my mind at ease. I live here in Austin Texas and am told that this is the one of the best cities in the world to have AFib.

Thank you Shannon for all your council and for guiding me to Natale and TCAI. You're a godsend!

-Tony



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/19/2018 11:23AM by ragatx.

Wow your so lucky to live in austin and your timing is right.
It may not be just persistent...who knows you might have just flipped right to perma......you don't really know cause its the 1st time it's been this long right from lone ep. only....you may have jumped the que...no matter there is no problem...Natale has seen everything multiple times over and could fix you even in his sleep.......esp. considering since you have had this condition for a short time and your much younger than the ave. person who has this curse.
Your laughing man...enjoy the ride and keep us posted......i will be there near years end for the same.

GL

You couldn't be going to a better place for your first trip under general. I've had it 5 times for non-afib related surgeries, and never has the experience been better than at St. David's. It's easy to say don't worry, don't be anxious when you've never experienced it before, but it truly is no big deal. It's like falling asleep and waking up. Except when you wake you can expect NSR and a really decent meal a couple few hours later. Those of us that have been to Austin envy you and your short trip home the next day. And the food, and the rich local music scene.

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You couldn't be going to a better place for your first trip under general. I've had it 5 times for non-afib related surgeries, and never has the experience been better than at St. David's. It's easy to say don't worry, don't be anxious when you've never experienced it before, but it truly is no big deal. It's like falling asleep and waking up. Except when you wake you can expect NSR and a really decent meal a couple few hours later. Those of us that have been to Austin envy you and your short trip home the next day. And the food, and the rich local music scene.

I second this. Though this is my first trip to saint David’s I will say the experience so far has surpassed any I have had in the past for surgical pretesting and staff interaction. And where I have been,UPMC Shadyside, has set that bar pretty high.

You are in good hands. Dr. Natale is the best IMO. I had 2 Ablations with Dr. Natale the last June 2016. I was persistent but have been in sweet NSR for over 2 years. You my friend are in good hands.

Good luck today.

Procedure went smoothly & I’m in NSR. My resting rate is higher than normal at 92 & my BP is lower at 110/60. Usually 140/80 @ 65bpm. Lightheaded and tired prob bc of the lower BP. Not sure why that is but the nurses aren’t concerned. Figure I’ll get some sleep and see how things are tomorrow. All in all feeling pretty good and in sweet NSR for the first time in 2 weeks.

Wonderful Rag
My BP is like that or lower so your fine.....its prob. the ansth....that kept you feeling a little off, light headed and even naus. for many hours after you wake up. That HR will prob. lower some but will stay in the 70's to low 80's for at least a month maybe 2 until the inflam. settles down but everyone is diff. so who knows....some take few weeks to get normal or near and some take 6 months to a year....mine took about 3 months to get within 5 beats per min. and my 1st procedure was an abject failure.
What did Natale tell you he did....did he go beyond his basic ablation of the PV's and the post. wall?
Keep us posted...that stress level must be in a good place now huh?



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/21/2018 10:23AM by vanlith.

Natale said that I came in with AFlutter and he did a PVI-E, the PV, superior vena cava and “back wall”. He said there were no triggers in the LAA & he wasn’t too aggressive. I’m not familiar with what that means but I trust he did what was necessary plus a little preventative too. He didn’t prescribe rhythm control drugs & said I should be on OAC for 3-5 months.

My rate has come down a little bit to 80bpm and the BP has come up a bit. Fatigue/dizziness & other symptoms are gradually improving. Overall feeling better than when I came in and NSR is holding. Natale told me to not be discouraged if I see arrhythmia in the blanking period just take beta blocker and call if the symptoms are intense or last for a while. Definitely feel like I got the 5 star treatment here. Natale and staff are rockstars.

Glad you are doing well. Take it from me you were by far in the best hands possible. And you are spot on about the staff here.

Well thats great that he left the LAA alone cause that would have been blood thinners forever or a watchman installed and no right side coronary sinus problem nice pretty basic...how long did it take?
So it was flutter all that time...interesting.

I was told it was 47 minutes of “burn time”. So a relatively short op. I’ve had ekgs read both AF and flutter so not sure if I’ve got both. Have heard that AF can settle into a flutter pattern (or maybe it’s the other way around). Natale said I had flutter on the table. Heard that’s a good thing that maybe flutter ablation is easier or results maybe hold longer. I’m just happy to be home and resting in NSR!



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/21/2018 05:05PM by ragatx.

Today is 2 weeks out from procedure. Had a bit of a scare that ended up being nothing serious. Was at work on Monday and all the sudden I couldn't read the text on my monitor. It's hard to put into words, but it was as if portions of the words on screen were just disappearing. I looked at a calendar on the wall and random squares on the grid were just blank. I tried to text my wife but couldn't read what I had typed. scary.. I didn't have any other stroke symptoms, but having never experienced this before and knowing that post-ablation there is an increased risk of stroke, I just went on in to the ER @ St Davids. The symptoms lasted maybe 30 minutes and were mostly gone by the time they got me settled into a room. They ran all kinds of tests, MRI/CT/ultrasound/bloodwork and kept me overnight for a "stroke rule-out". Fortunately everything was negative and they diagnosed me with something called an Ocular Migraine. It was in both eyes and they said that usually if you have impaired vision related to a stroke what usually follows is the worst headache you've ever had and often additional physical symptoms of a stroke shortly after. Good to know! What fantastic timing to experience this headache w/ visual impairment for the first time. lol. I was just relieved to know things were okay.

The Eliquis had been giving me dull headaches and neck tension and maybe just being under poor florescent lighting and my first day back at work kicked off this intense migraine. Hard to say. I haven't had another one this week. I think I'm tolerating the Eliquis a little better too. I've noticed that w/ activity the symptoms aren't as pronounced. It might just be tension associated w/ being sedentary (I'm normally pretty active). When I had AF episodes in the past and was on the Eliquis as PIP I didn't do much but sit around b/c of the fatigue and I had the headaches then too.

Other than that scare I've been feeling good. Today I tested myself fast-walking uphill and my HR got up to 110bpm which isn't all that high for me (usually around 140 when running). I expected it to fly up really high in response to moderate activity. I did feel a little winded afterward. I do an aerobics crossfit-lite class called Orange Theory and an indoor cycling class called Flywheel that I'm desperately looking forward to getting back to. I'm holding off another 2 weeks and just walking the neighborhood, lifting light weights, playing baseball w/ my son & trying to get my daily 10k steps in the meantime.

I've had a couple of PACs/PVCs but no sustained arrhythmia. One question... I've heard that it can be a good sign to have some arrhythmia in the blanking period. I know I'm only 15% of the way through the 3 months but if I have none does the opposite hold true & that it's not a great sign? I'm not on any rhythm control meds, just the Eliquis and Bystolic (for mild hypertension).

Thanks everyone. : )



Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 08/04/2018 01:30AM by ragatx.

Thanks for the update ragatx.

Here, having some arrhythmias during the blanking period is considered normal. Ectopics are usual.
But I don't know why being in NSR after ablation should be considered a bad sign. It's nice.

Sounds like Eliquis is not nes. your friend...maybe ask about switching to Xarelto.

Glad your doing well.