Quoteamyorca Hi Daisy, Are you going to have open heart surgery? Or is it something you can have done non invasively? As Carey said, mine was done in June. It wasn’t non-invasive, but much less invasive than open heart surgery. I got a “new part” via a catheter though initially it looked like I’d need open heart surgery. The cardio thoracic surgeon I consulted with at Cedars Sinai recommendedby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteCarey As for which to do first, I'd say do the valve first. It's the more important procedure, and also the much bigger one that will take months to reach full recovery, so get that out of the way first. It's also a good idea to do that first because sometimes valve replacement can cause afib. But if you want Natale to do the ablation, I would call his office and talk to themby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
I went to Dr. Alfredo Trento at Cedars Sinai when I was faced with mitral valve surgery. I was impressed. Cedars Sinai is rated third in the country for valve surgery from my research. My situation was less complicated and he recommended a transcatheter procedure rather than open heart. Yours is more complicated but if you want to consider traveling for a second opinion, that is a place to considby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteGeorgeN And if you had one of the new pacemakers that “stomped out” ectopics that could help. I have one of these and I think it has reduced my burden. How does it work? Some here have big complaints about ectopic? I’m happy with my solution, but others may be interested.When the pacemaker detects ectopics it speeds up for a few seconds. The heart will follow the pacemaker’s higher, bby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteGeorgeNMost of my episodes would come on at 3AM. I noticed that if there were a couple of ectopics in a two minute monitoring, it was very likely I'd wake up in afib. And if you had one of the new pacemakers that “stomped out” ectopics that could help. I have one of these and I think it has reduced my burden.by Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteIngrid Daisy Thanks for your response. It was very helpful. Do you still have AF episodes? Do you have any side effects from the flecainide or Eloquis? How long did you have Afib before you had the pacemaker and how long have you had Afib for? IngridI haven’t had one since January, and that was at a time I had some flu-like illness—inflammation and dehydration can bring it on. I take aby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
Hi Ingrid, Others can tell you more but I can comment on some things. I also had a low resting heart rate, about 47 daytime and 43 at night. I never found that flecainide had much effect on heart rate but the beta blocker you need to take with it, will—as will diltiazem, which is the main point of taking it when you have an episode. I used it during episodes in the several years before I realiby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteCarey That kind of success rate combined with the near total lack of complications (a single pericardial effusion in the whole study), the speed (avg. 92 minutes), the lack of need for general anesthesia, and the lack of risk to the esophagus and phrenic nerve makes this nothing short of huge. The afibbers out there who are considering ablation but haven't done it yet should seriouslyby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteThe Anti-Fib Is anyone having success using Drugs to Convert out of AFIB? I know many have used Flecainide with some success. How about other Drugs like Propapfenone, Amio or Illbuteride? Specifically I am wondering about how people feel before they convert to NSR. I can often convert using Flecainide, but it causing a sort of drug-induced Heart Failure. I feel queasy and uneasy, haby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuotePompon Here in EU, we're usually very cautious about names we write in our posts. Common use is to only give our Dr's name in private messagesI’m curious about this caution. If someone is looking for an excellent EP in a certain geographical region, it would seem that the best way to help them would be to post the names of EPs whom members have knowledge of or experience with. Thatby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteSueChef As for 50 mg once a day, the half-life of flecainide is 12-27 hours, so it's entirely possible that 50 mg once a day is perfectly fine for you. It's working so far, right? With a half-life of 12 - 27 hours, I'd love to only take this medication once a day. We'll see how it goes. I think I'm focusing too much on possible side effects and that starts a worry cby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteCarey Black licorice reduces potassium levels, which means I don't think anyone with afib should get within 10 feet of the stuff. It also reduces the effectiveness of warfarin, so people on warfarin should steer clear of it as well.It can also raise your blood pressure and is often recommended for those with the type of autonomic dysfunction that results in blood pressure so low thaby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
“It discusses a new home test device for sleep apnea aimed at cardiologists: ". . . treating cardiovascular patients without considering the status of sleep apnea is malpractice," says the manufacturer” My EP uses this home device (Watchpat) and it generated quite a comprehensive report while not interfering with sleep. A certified sleep specialist signed off on the report. I had hadby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
There are reduced dose guidelines for some NOACs. I remember that there is a guideline to reduce the dose of Pradaxa at 75. They also suggest a lower dose if you weigh below xx? Something to ask your doctor about.by Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
I had one with conscious sedation—versed and fentanyl—and I don’t remember a thing except having my throat sprayed with some version of lidocaine and having something strapped around my face to position the probe in my mouth. So no pain, no anxiety, just a sore throat for a few hours. Also walked out, disc in hand, with no after effects.by Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteMethan99 I was told by Dr that will perform my Colonoscopy that I have to stop Eliquis three days before procedure. I had my LAA ablated and need to take Eliquis. I am very concerned being off for three days not sure what to do. Thanks Mike I take Eliquis and have had a colonoscopy done with heparin bridging. The heparin is an easy injection you can do yourself and it only lasts for abby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM
Interesting topic. This is my first post here though some of you may recognize from other Afib forums. I have had Afib for 9 years but haven’t yet had ablation. So far it has been controlled with flecainide. I have had auras without headaches for about 30 years. I am about to have a trans catheter valve fix (MitraClip) and it will require a trans-septal puncture so it will be interesting to see iby Daisy - AFIBBERS FORUM