Just finished my 3D-TEE at Scripps Green Hospital in La Jolla

HI All,

I just finished my third follow up 3D-TEE at Scripps and woke up from the propofol just 1 hour and 10 minutes ago and Magdalena already just dropped me off at the hotel 10 miles from Scripps while she is off to rendezvous with one of her long time La Jolla girlfriends while we are still here in La Jolla/Del Mar area.

And after this brief check in to the forum and these few short posts, I will be following my own self-prescribed orders to take it easy after a non stop work load the last two months , and rest up doing nothing work related at all the next couple days ... a prescription also being gratefully enforced by my lovely wife as well .....

At least until we get back to Sedona over the weekend, after which I will dive into the current AFIB Report hook line and sinker until finished and out to everyone in a couple more weeks.

Great news, even if largely expected, but Dr Rubenson .. the best TEE cardiologist I know of ...said this third follow up TEE after my Amplatzer ADO-II plug sealed my leaking LAA 15 months ago, showed my LAA was every bit as perfectly sealed and ligated as was seen on the 3 month and 6 month post procedure TEE.

As such, while I still have to get the final word from Dr Matthew Price the vascular plug specialist interventional cardiologist here, and colleague of Dr Natale, who did that procedure, gives me the green light that I am now officially done. He has originally said he wanted 4 3D-TEEs over a two years period since mine was something like the 10th one of these ever done and they wanted to get a full natural history on all of us 'early birds'.

Suffice it to say that I no longer have an LAA and the seal is perfect and endothelialized so there is no real reason why or how that could ever change. As such, Dr Rubenson said he was going to suggest turning me loose now.

Sooo, while I never say never, it is highly encouraging that with my long freedom from all arrhythmia now, and free of all OAC drugs including no baby aspirin even for the last 9 months too (I had to go back on OAC for 7 months after the stroke and leak repair), it could actually be that I am basically now officially done with the beast at 6 months shy of a full quarter century of dealing with AFIB either directly or indirectly as in the LAA isolation/ LARIAT Ligation/LAA LARIAT leak/ Modest Stroke and then ADOII leak repair. It is looking very likely that I am truly done with it all for the foreseeable future .... always knocking on wood one day at a time.

Signing off now for a few days but wanted to share the good news.

Shannon

PS many thanks again to Linda Couts Dr Natale's fabulous NP at Scripps, and also TEE maestro Dr David Rubenson and his TEE dream team including Eric there for yet another smooth as silk TEE ... that man really knows how to do a TEE with consummate skill and ease for the patient for sure. And Dr Rubenson is so very kind and gentle a man as well .. not at all unlike his colleague Dr Natale. And to other nurses and staff there at Scripps I've gotten to know well over the last year and a half. Mahalo to them all!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/08/2015 12:59AM by Shannon.

Shannon,

Great news!!! Enjoy your time off with Magda!

George

Congrats Shannon. Wonderful news. Many great days ahead! Safe travels, my friend.

Ken

Congratulations, Shannon. I hope the afib complications have ended for you. Reading your history, you've experienced just about everything afib can throw at you. Time for some relaxation.

Doreen

This is great news, Shannon. You deserve a bit of a rest!
Thanks for all you do around here.

John

Shannon - I echo the 'good news' sentiments!

Please do take time to relax and regroup before you jump into work again.

So pleased that you now can rest easy now that the heart issues are over.

Amen to all that.

Best to you,
Jackie

Just had a TEE follow-up from my Feb LAA ablation. Not good news, minimal contraction of the LAA and very low velocity, ~17cm/S. I will have the follow-up consultation with Dr. Natale on Friday. I guess the Atri-clip is the next step, I just hope I can get it scheduled as soon as possible, hopefully by the end of the year. I'm not sure I'll be able to keep my insurance next year and who knows what the new insurance will approve? I don't want to be on Xeralto for the rest of my life. I'm not sure what to ask Dr. Natale. There were some observations on the TEE report I don't understand. P-wave ratios, aorta and aortic arch grade 1-2 artherosclerosis, pulmonary vein diastolic velocity[?] low. I'm wondering what the atriclip will fix and what I'll be left with. My LVEF has dropped from 69% to 60%. Any advice welcome.
Thanks,
Mike

60% EF is decent so I would not stress about that.