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Re: trigger finding - 2 days ago

Yeah, smart move. Refusing the monitor isn't the right choice. And if you're on traditional Medicare with a decent Medigap policy, you shouldn't be paying a single dime for anything once you've met your plan B deductible, which is $283 for 2026. If you're paying more than that, I recommend reviewing your coverage choices.

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Starting new thread on Isolating LAA topic - 6 days ago

Quotemjamesone I doubt he even does better than other elite EPs at high volume centers do with PAF. And dispute he does better with LSPAF than other elite EP does with PAF. He may do better than other eltes comparng LSPAF with LSPAF, but again the trade off might be a higher thrombotic risk. I wasn't comparing him to other elites. I was comparing him to the widely published success rates

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Interatrial septum healimg - 8 days ago

Like gloaming said, it's an inconsequential hole that usually closes naturally fairly quickly. But even if it takes a few weeks, it's too small to be of any danger. Ever heard the term patent foramen ovale? We're all born with a hole in our septum that's quite a bit larger than that needle poke. In most people, it closes naturally within a few months after birth. But in so

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Strenuous exercise after PFA - 8 days ago

I don't know of any empirical evidence that strenuous exercise can ruin or "undo" an ablation, and my knowledge of the physiology of the procedure tells me that's not really a thing. Injured heart muscle is going to scar over -- which is the goal in an ablation -- whether the heart is working hard or not. That said, I have never had any EP tell me to restrict my physical a

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Starting new thread on Isolating LAA topic - 8 days ago

Quotemjamesone The fact that LAA isolation was the step that terminated your AF doesn’t necessarily mean it was necessary for success. The alternative wasn’t going home in AF, as they could have cardioverted you. That’s what they did with me, and I have been AF free since. He isolated the LAA because he mapped afib signals originating there. I know this because I've read a couple of dozen

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Starting new thread on Isolating LAA topic - 8 days ago

Quotemjamesone From a Natale authored paper in 2020: 'We feel that in patients with non-paroxysmal AF, especially longstanding persistent AF, LAA should be isolated (no focal ablation) without evidence of triggers " I'm aware of that statement but the important words are with non-paroxysmal AF, especially longstanding persistent AF. Specifically, he does not do empiric LAA

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Starting new thread on Isolating LAA topic - 8 days ago

I think your analysis is spot on. I do not believe that he isolates the LAA automatically or casually. He knows better than most what the consequences are.

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Block member button? - 14 days ago

You can't block them but you can report them, which will make them go away very quickly. Please don't be shy about clicking that button.

by Carey - GENERAL HEALTH FORUM

Re: 0 Chads vasc score and cardioversion - 15 days ago

Basically, yes. Is it warranted? That question has been debated for years and there's still no gold standard answer. Another option is to do a transesophageal echocardiogram (TEE) prior to the cardioversion, but most ERs aren't likely to do that because it's not commonly done in the ER. So they may not have anyone trained in the procedure on hand and paging someone and waiting f

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Afib Has Returned - 17 days ago

The EPs Shannon was talking about who stop short of isolating the LAA for rational reasons are EPs who understand how to know it needs isolating, how to do so, and what the risks and benefits are. Unfortunately, that doesn't describe the average EP even today, 9 years after mine was isolated. Most EPs don't actually know how to map the LAA or how to isolate it. That was demonstrated qui

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Afib Has Returned - 18 days ago

Quotenonthumper I don't think I would have liked it if I had woken up from my procedure and he had stopped short of isolating the LAA, leaving me in A-fib, pending further discussion and another procedure. No, you wouldn't have liked it at all. I spent 7 years dealing with exactly that. Three EPs with impressive credentials, 5 ablations, and none of them even knew how to figure out th

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Accidental electrical shocks after ablation - 18 days ago

Quotenonthumper So am I running the risk of outside voltage burning some new pathways through my ablation scar tissue? Probably nobody knows for sure, but safer to avoid. No, that's not a thing that happens unless we're talking lightning or industrial voltages, in which case you'd be dead anyway. Really, I wouldn't worry about it beyond just the normal safety measures.

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: My TEE checkup of my Watchman - 20 days ago

QuoteOleanmike1 If you have to travel from out of state, does Dr. Natale require a return to Austin for the TEE? Require? No, but recommend, yes. The TEE they need is very specific and they've found that many TEE operators say they understand what they need but often don't deliver and the TEE has to be repeated.

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Afib Has Returned - 22 days ago

Many -- probably most -- teaching hospitals won't allow patients to restrict Fellows from participating in the procedure. But keep in mind that a Fellow isn't a med student or even a resident. They're a practicing cardiologist and likely already board certified.

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Afib Has Returned - 23 days ago

I'm not familiar with him but his credentials and experience look good. He focuses on afib ablations, and that's who you want. You want the guy or gal who lives and breathes ablations and has done thousands of them, which he probably has. You also want a large institution that does many procedures per year, and I'm sure that describes Johns Hopkins. What you might consider doin

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Watchman clot still there - 26 days ago

Heparin is a more powerful anticoagulant but I guarantee it did not dissolve that clot. Your body did that. The heparin just allowed that to happen without new clot being added to the old clot.

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Are you SURE you don't feel your Watchman? - 26 days ago

I am 100% certain I never feel it. Even right after the procedure I never felt it. Sounds more like arthritis in the cartilage surrounding the sternum and ribs. My wife has experienced that for several years and she describes it the same way. And if jabbing it with your thumb affects how it feels then it's definitely not your heart or anything deeper than your ribcage.

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Watchman clot still there - 27 days ago

Quotesusan.d Carey- isn’t Eliquis 5mg BID an anticoagulant? What should I be taking? Yes, it is. There's nothing you can take that will dissolve that clot. Your body will do that over time. But the Eliquis will prevent the clot from enlarging and new clots from forming, so it's the perfect thing for you to be taking.

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Watchman clot still there - 28 days ago

The trouble is, anticoagulants don't dissolve clots, and that includes the heparin you injected. All they do is prevent clots from enlarging and then your body does the actual dissolving. The only drugs that does dissolve clots are tPA and a couple of close cousins, but it's 1) extremely dangerous and 2) wicked expensive. It's $8K-$10K per dose, and if you want to see a drug th

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: The (Imaginary) Evils of Coffee - 28 days ago

Yeah, if you go on any forum in the world and declare that coffee doesn't cause or trigger afib, you'll get a zillion people screaming that it does for them. Since there are people who are triggered by things as harmless as cold drinks and lying on their left side, I'm not going to say no one is triggered by caffeine, but I think it's much rarer than people think and a lot of

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

The (Imaginary) Evils of Coffee - 28 days ago

QuoteDrinking up to five cups of caffeinated coffee a day, its authors wrote, has been linked to a lower risk of heart attack, diabetes, stroke and irregular heartbeat. https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/has-science-finally-made-up-its-mind-about-coffees-health-benefits/

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: My TEE checkup of my Watchman - 29 days ago

Quotenonthumper In three months they want me to have another TEE in Austin, or a CT scan locally to see if the atria have returned to normal size so I can get off Eliquis. Not sure I want the radiation from the CT scan since I've already had fluoroscopy twice this year. Assuming the CT place you use locally has modern equipment, that's really not much radiation. I wouldn't be co

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Allina Health? - 5 weeks ago

Can you add the link you refer to and a link to the list of high rep facilities posted here? I don't recall such a list.

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Slowdown in Watchman sales? - 5 weeks ago

Quotemjamesone Had I opted for Watchman, I'd be stuck with it. True, but that begs the question: So what? It has no impact on your life whatsoever. You can't see it, can't feel it, has no side effects, it's MRI safe, doesn't show up on TSA scans -- nothing. For all intents and purposes, it's not there. I think it's great that someone like you with a CHA

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Slowdown in Watchman sales? - 5 weeks ago

Click here to read the article without the paywall.

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Slowdown in Watchman sales? - 5 weeks ago

Quotenonthumper Article mentions that the newest model of Watchman appears to be slightly less successful than a previous version. Now I wonder which version I have, and what the difference is. I didn't see that at all. The only comparison was a study that compared Watchman alone vs. anticoagulants alone, which found that the anticoagulants had a slight edge. But that doesn't take bl

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: clots - 5 weeks ago

Quotestahoo I consider this a conspiracy. I am scared of Coumadin/Warfarin. Is there really a five-time chance of a stroke during these episodes that are mentioned in the commercials or is it a scare tactic? Am I rolling the dice here? Some episodes last like twelve hours with heart rate about 133. It's not a conspiracy, it's not a scare tactic, and yes, afib does increase your st

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Newly approved pill cuts LDL cholesterol levels by more than half - 5 weeks ago

Jim, there's a cardiologist at NYU I think you'd like. I have SiriusXM radio and often listen to segments of the "Doctor Radio" show. It's broken into two-hour live segments oriented toward broad subjects like cardiology, pulmonology, etc. They're hosted by some notable doctor in that field. So there's this cardiologist, Dr. Fred Feit, who hosts the cardiology s

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: Low dose Aspirin - 5 weeks ago

Quotecaliforniagal My question is: Might it be possible/ feasible to NOT take the smalll amt of 40.5 mg aspirin if I take a sizable amount of blood thinning supplements? C; E, (which I ony get in small quantities in a mult vi-min); Co-Q10; Ginko Biloba; fish oils; alpha lipoic acid; etc., etc.). Could labs be done to monitor my clotting factors in an experiment such as this? Sure, it might

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM

Re: colonscopy timing - 5 weeks ago

I agree with Jim that a single episode doesn't justify an ablation. And why stress about the Zio? It's just a patch. Worst case is the adhesive irritates your skin.

by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM