Re: For those support group members considering anablation procedure

[Guest guest]

Glad to hear things are going well for you Bill !

Thor

For those support group members considering anablation

procedure

I joined the support group last November and to date have posted only one

message. However, I have benefited from many of the messages I have read

over the past three months and I am feeling guilty that I have not shared my

experiences with others nor responded to others requesting information and

support.

I apologize for the length of this message, but felt that anyone facing an

ablation might want to hear of my experience in some detail.

I am a 59 year old male and underwent a pulmonary vein isolation (for my AF)

and a cavotricuspid isthmus ablation (for my atrial flutter) at UCSD

(University of California, San Diego) on February 13. While it is much too

early to properly evaluate the outcome of my procedures, I have been in NSR

since the procedures and I am no longer taking any heart medication other

than Coumadin. Prior to the procedures I was on Rythmol and Toprol as well

as Coumadin. My EPs, Dr. Feld and Dr. Doug Gibson, have stopped the

Rythmol and have instructed me to take 12.5 or 25 mg of Toprol only if my

resting heart rate is consistently above 55 beats per minute. So far I am

in the high 40's and low 50's.

I was diagnosed with AF two years ago, but after the diagnosis realized that

I had been in and out of AF and atrial flutter for at least two years prior

to a proper medical diagnosis. My condition was diagnosed as lone AF and I

treated it with considerable success using just Rythmol for close to two

years. As recently as last September my episodes were sufficiently

infrequent that I was advised to stick with my medication rather than have

an ablation. However, shortly thereafter I found myself in AF for days on

end and underwent one cardioversion. While I ended up in NSR after the

cardioversion, two days later I was back in AF. It was at this point that I

contacted Dr. Feld who recommended an ablation.

The two procedures lasted about four hours and were performed without any

complications. I did end up staying in the hospital for two nights due to

continued bleeding in my right groin where one of the four catheters was

inserted. I was taking Lovenox by injection after the procedures to prevent

blood clots and this, of course, made the clotting process that much more

difficult. However, after a second night in the hospital I was discharged.

My biggest problem throughout the entire hospital stay was an increasingly

troublesome backache. I have a bad back and the hospital beds combined with

my inability to sit up (due to the bleeding) made my hospital stay

difficult.

I chose to be fully sedated throughout the procedures after reading of

others who were partially awake and aware of what was taking place. Being

fully sedated does carry additional risks, but there was no way I was going

to be aware of anything even if I thought I was in the Twilight Zone.

The nurses, staff, and students at UCSD (UCSD is a teaching hospital) were

outstanding and I could not have asked for better care or a more caring

group of people. And I was a high maintenance patient due to the bleeding

and my backache.

I am now hoping and praying that my procedures will be 100% successful and

that I will be able to stop all heart medication including Coumadin within

the next few months. As this message is quite long I will end it by

offering to try to respond to any specific questions from others about my

procedures, in particular, those considering UCSD to treat their AF.

Best of luck to everyone dealing with AF and searching for a cure to their

heart condition.

Bill C