Decision made for ablation

Good morning Forum,

I have not been posting in awhile but kept reading various subjects. I finally decided for my ablation and it will be done at the Cleveland Clinic of Weston. FL. on January 30th.

I was first diagnosed with paroxysmal LAF last August. I was placed on Rhythmol and Pradaxa. The Rhythmol did not help much and I have been experiencing almost daily afib episodes lasting between 2 and 5 hours. I have also had a couple of 12 hour run. My symptoms are relatively mild and I can still exercise, run and lift weights.

I do not have any underlying heart issues, my LA measures 4.1cm my echocardiogram checked out fine and my EP forecasted a 80% success rate and 2% complications. I am 53 years old, I do not want to be on meds for the rest of my life and certainly I do not wish for the AAD to do more damage to my electrical system or to create more Arrhythmia.

These are the main reasons I opted for the ablation but most importantly the experience, the success rate and the guidance of my EP dr. Pinski greatly contributed to my final decision.

I must admit I am terrified of the procedures but also confident on Dr. Pinski's expertise. A few afibbers who have had the procedure described it almost like a walk in the park with the most annoying thing being to lay on their back for 6 hours. I wish for me that very same experience and to resume my new life soon afib free.

I wanted to thank you all for all of your posts as well as afibbers.net for helping me understanding the disease.

I wil keep you posted.


Gianfranco

Gianfranco - I certainly wish you the best possible outcome. You've chosen a highly skilled and competent EP in Dr. Pinski so just try to relax and let him do his magic. You'll be enjoying NSR before you know it. Do let us know how you are.
Best to you,
Jackie

Good luck to you. You have obviously educated yourself, contemplated the situation and come up with a solid decision. At 41mm LA, your chances of success are not affected by remodelling yet, so the timing is good.

Let us know when you are in and what your results are. Expect it to take a short while to settle down. From what I have been reading you may want to discuss antiarrhymia meds with your EP for the 'settling down' phase after ablation to increase odds of success. Also from what I read you may want to ensure that your magnesium and potassium levels are maintained optimally before and after.

Think you have a great shot at a one shot success. Best of luck. Will be thinking of you.

Murray L

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Tikosyn uptake Dec 2011 500ug b.i.d. NSR since!
Herein lies opinion, not professional advice, which all are well advised to seek.

Best of luck Gianfranco! I know you will do well with Dr. Pinski.

Jim

Good luck Gianfranco We will be eager to hear of your success and happiness again! ~ Barb

Gianfranco,

Best wishes to your procedure tomorrow.

BillC

What is LA and what should the range be? How does a LA out of range affect ablation surgery?

Nancy M.

Well, IM a little late to the party but am sure you are resting now after a successful procedure and already on the road to healing up quickly!

Best wishes, Gianfranco

Shannon

LA is left atrium. Normal size for LA is about 40mm. Enlarged LA introduces challenges to the ablation procedure and some EP's will not do an ablation on a LA over 50-55mm in size for this reason. In any event, smaller is better.

Murray L

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Tikosyn uptake Dec 2011 500ug b.i.d. NSR since!
Herein lies opinion, not professional advice, which all are well advised to seek.

Gianfranco, your situation sounds a lot like mine. I was having paroxysmal AF at least once a day with episodes starting at night and lasting a few hours, some as long as 12 hours or more. Supplements and changing diet didn't seem to help (it helped shorten episodes at first, but then they got as bad as ever). I went on Flecainide back in September (100 mg twice a day) and it has been working 100%. If it ever stops working, I'm going to get an ablation right away. I won't try any other AADs. My EP is Dr. Blair Halperin. From what I understand he has a good reputation in this area (Portland, OR, area), and does 2 to 4 ablations a week.

Diane

Dear friends,
Thank you for your encouraging words. Dr. Pinsky pulled his magic. i am in NSR and resting comfortably in my room. Dr. P gave me his thump up. i will see him again tomorrow morning and hopefully if not complications, I will be discharge by noon. Everything went well and a part from my sore throat I feel excellent. It does not even feel I have had the procedure a few hours ago. I am so happy I made this decision and must say that everyone involved at the Cleveland Clinic were beyond outstanding.
I remain optimistic and aware as well that I may need a touch up for which I will be super ready in case I will need one.
Lights out now For me, need to get some sleep. Thank you thank you thank you again to all and to this lifesaver site which helped me immensely in understanding this disease.
Ciao for now, Gianfranco

That's great news Gianfranco! It wasn't as hard as you thought it would be, was it? That was my take on the whole thing. Keep up the good heartbeats.

Jim

Gianfranco,

Your story makes me want to get an ablation right now with Dr. Pinski. He sounds like a great doctor. I'm getting more and more concerned with the possible long-term side effects of Flecainide and am not sure how much longer I want to be on it. What's currently keeping me from wanting one is the fear that I'm going to feel like crap for a while afterwards. Of course, Dr. Pinski lives across the U.S. from me, so I guess seeing him isn't in the cards for me. Hopefully the guy I have planned to do it is as good (but it's hard to know for sure, unless I talk to someone else who he's done).

Gianfranco,
Glad all went well for you. Thanks for sharing your experience. I am scheduled for an ablation on the 13th and starting to get anxious. Reading the positive experiences on this forum gives me some comfort. Thanks again and good luck in your recovery.
Chuck

Hello Chuck,
Three day after ablation I feel really good. I only experienced a sore throat and discomfort in my chest, normal symptoms after the procedure, that now have subsided. Like I said earlier, the decision to have the ablation done very early in the stage of my disease was probably one of the best decision I have ever made in my life. I remain open minded in the case a second procedure will be necessary but I am SO Happy on the outcome of it. The most difficult part for me was to drive to the hospital the morning of my ablation. I was anxious, really worried that something catastrophic could happen during surgery.... But magically, when in the per operation room getting prepped by the nurses I felt relieved and knew right then that I was in excellent hands and that I was going o be fine. Chuck, relax,, your EP will do his magic and you will be in your room in a "heart beat" resting and enjoying your regained NSR. Good luck with everything, I will be praying for you and your medical team and please let us know the outcome.
Gianfranco

Thanks for sharing. it means a lot to the rest of us. So happy to hear of your success. A good news story

Murray

Murray L

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Tikosyn uptake Dec 2011 500ug b.i.d. NSR since!
Herein lies opinion, not professional advice, which all are well advised to seek.

Gianfranco,
Thanks for the prayers. I know as the time gets closer I will be more concerned/anxious. I have decided no to wait on ablation because, like you, I was afraid the AF would get progressively worse the longer I put it off. I feel the likelihood of success is best early on. I do worry about "something going wrong" during the procedure though. Hope all goes well for you and you stay A Fib free and in NSR.

Regards,
Chuck

Diane, like you I was on Flec but just as a pill in pocket and I just decided to get the ablation and so far so good after 3 and a half months. In my experience there is nothing much to get over and with a good EP the chances of problems are very low, 1 in a 100 or less. So I would say, go do it ..

Keep us posted, I am scheduled for the summer at CCF.
Erika