Ablation Scheduled

After almost 7 years of fighting afib with medication, supplements, and dietary changes, I am moving on to ablation. The ablation is scheduled with Dr. Schweikert in Akron in mid-September. Rythmol worked well for me for almost 6 years, but breakthroughs were happening with more frequency. I made a last attempt to control it with medication by switching to flecainide, which was a disaster. While transitioning from Rythmol to flec, I had a 15 hour episode, and after four days on flec, I had a 32 hour episode. That was the deciding factor. I didn't want to play with fire any longer and I was reluctant to bump up the flec, and instead switched back to the highest Rythmol dose. So far so good, but I'm not waiting on pins and needles anymore for the next event that may result in permanent afib. I'd never had an episode of 32 hours duration before, and don't want another one. It's obvious I either need constant meds or an ablation.

It's hard to know if the dietary changes and supplements extended the effectiveness of the medicine, but I will continue with the low carb/no sugar/no MSG ever/no fast foods ever dietary path, potassium and magnesium supplements, and the ever-present low sodium V8 after the ablation in my quest for a normal heartbeat. I tried taurine for several weeks twice and all it did was cause frequent skipped beats before the lurch into afib.

Dr. Schweikert was wonderful, as usual, and spent over an hour with my husband and me, patiently answering all our questions, and instilling confidence along the way.

Doreen

As an aside, I asked about the DECAAF study, which had been the topic on this forum in prior postings. He felt it has promise in the future, if it passes much more rigorous testing, after improvements are made on the MRI testing, and when a much larger patient sample is used.

I want to once again express my appreciation for the collective wisdom of this board through this challenging disease and the steering to Dr. Schweikert. Now that the decision has been made, I'm ready to get this over with ASAP.

Hi Doreen,

I commend you on your self-education efforts and your decision to go "top tier" in your choice of EP. I believe you have made a wise choice, given your history with "the beast". I wish you all the best in your upcoming ablation with Dr. Schweikert. Please keep us in the loop. We would very much appreciate an "ablation report" from you when you return home.

Warm Regards,
John

Dear Doreen,

Sounds like you have thoughtfully pursued every possibility to try to get things under control without ablation, and I think you are wise to move forward if you sense that you are moving toward persistent AF. As you know from those of us who waited, the process can become lengthier with more AF and longer episodes, not to mention, as you note, the psychological impact of frequent and lengthy encounters with AF. I am a veteran of both, as I have written here.

I wish you the best with your ablation with Dr. Schweikert, who is clearly one of the best, and I believe that you will get real relief from the procedure.

With best wishes,

Rob

Sounds great Doreen,

You have set a good foundation of supportive effort to assist in your recovery phase too and with Dr Schweikert, you are in very good hands as well! Keep us all posted and wishing you a quick turn around and speedy return to long term NSR.

Shannon

Thank you all for the positive support. I will probably check in a couple days before the ablation (which is scheduled for 20 days from now, but who's counting) for last minute questions or just a pep talk.

I have to go off the Rythmol for three days before the procedure, so I'm keeping fingers crossed that the afib won't come back with a roar right before the ablation. I am to stay on the metropolol through the ablation and I believe during the blanking period.


Doreen

Dear Doreen,

We'll look forward to your updates, and don't hesitate to ask any last-minute questions. I wouldn't worry about going back into AF when you come off Rythmol. I would think of it as the necessary preparation to ensure the best possible outcome with ablation. The drug needs to clear your system so it's not masking any sources of the AF, as I'm sure you know. It's not too difficult to endure a long episode if you can see light at the end of the tunnel. I was in persistent AF for five months prior to my first ablation. In some ways it was easier than dealing with the constant roller coaster of AF to NSR, never knowing when or what might trigger another AF episode. It's great that the AAR drug has worked so well for you with the other efforts you've made. I tried Multaq for several months after my first ablation (i was a 19-year veteran of AF, so one procedure to resolve it would have been a near miracle), but it was worse than dealing with AF. I actually did better when I stopped the drug, and was moving toward a much more stable, if not AF-free, condition when I had my second procedure in early July. All is going very well thus far.

Glad you will be seeing Dr. S. soon.

Best wishes,

Rob

Doreen,

Many patients experience pericarditis shortly after an ablation. Left untreated, it is very painful. Meds can resolve it in a matter of minutes. Ask your doctor about what to expect, including how to get the hospital to administer meds if it happens in the middle of the night. My nurse in the cardiac wing was completely clueless when it happened to me. I ended up suffering needlessly for the rest of the night after my ablation until my electrophysiologist made his rounds in the morning.

Good luck with your ablation. If you are like me, you'll find out it's no big deal and wonder why you waited so long. They've gotten really really good with this procedure.

By the way, I had the same experience you did. Rhythmol worked. Switching to flec wasn't a positive experience.

Best of Luck,
The sooner the better as far as I'm concerned.
Waiting too long only leads to stroke and fibrosis even in well controlled patients on AAR's.

It's a cakewalk........

McHale

McHale:

"Waiting too long only leads to stroke and fibrosis even in well controlled patients on AAR's.

How so? On what basis will 150mg/day of Flec lead to stroke and fibrosis when I only experience a few hours of 85bpm AF per year this last 7 years? (First diagnosed AF 1999.)

Please let me have your views.

Regards,

Mike F.