I was diagnosed with Afib in Dec 2024 and was asymptomatic. The Afib was detected while I was being prepped for cataract surgery. 2 weeks prior to this event I was in NSR. I went on Eliquis and Diltiazem, then Metoprolol the end of February instead of the Diltiazem. Had a successful cardioversion in early March and then in the last week in May had a successful pulse field ablation procedure. It was only during the PFA procedure that it was discovered that I also had flutter in addition to the Afib. Flutter was in both the left and right atrial. Again, I was asymptomatic and had no idea I had flutter. Regardless the PFA took care all of all of the known arrythmia problems and hopefully nothing comes back. I am still on Eliquis and Metoprolol which is pretty much standard protocol but will be off of these meds in about 2 more months.
As I think I replied to you, maybe to someone else in the last three days, I originally had AF that was moving quickly to persistent just as I got my first ablation. That ablation was a failure and I was in the local ER inside of six days! I was placed on amiodarone which got my heart back playing nice.
The Holter monitor that came eight weeks later showed a lot of PACs. Over the next two months, I experienced short runs of AF. Then, my wife and I purchased an SUV, and I found myself in AF while awaiting to sign the sales agreement. Stress. I went to the ER because it was going a long time and I felt terrible, and that was when the attending ordered adenosine. The chemical showed I was actually in flutter, not AF. So, I felt it, but a fellow churchgoer, very active, had no idea he was in flutter permanently until his doctor detected it. So, we're all different. I went from apparently successfully ablated AF to many PACs and then to flutter. This all took place over four months. I had a second ablation about six weeks after the detected flutter, and that was a success. No PACs, no flutter. I did have about six hours of AF at the 13th day, and was sent home to wait it out from the ER. It self-corrected, and that was the very last AF. Remember, during the blanking period, a heart might skip into and out of AF once or twice, but it should self-correct and it should be less than 24 hours. If it's more than 24 hours, especially with a determined rate above 100 BPM, you need to see a doctor.
So, yes, it took two ablations, and I had AF, then PACs, then flutter....and now none.
It wasn't until I got my pacemaker that I was diagnosed with Afib. I am apparently one of the lucky 30% who get it after getting a pacemaker. At my follow-up appointment they told me I also had flutter. I was having troublesome symptoms such as feeling my heart racing and just being constantly aware of the heartbeats. I had an ablation about a week ago and those symptoms went away, but I am still fatigued. My smart watch has detected some Afib, but I am not sure how reliable that is. Looking forward to my next appointment to see what the prognosis is.
It wasn't until I got my pacemaker that I was diagnosed with Afib. I am apparently one of the lucky 30% who get it after getting a pacemaker. At my follow-up appointment they told me I also had flutter. I was having troublesome symptoms such as feeling my heart racing and just being constantly aware of the heartbeats. I had an ablation about a week ago and those symptoms went away, but I am still fatigued. My smart watch has detected some Afib, but I am not sure how reliable that is. Looking forward to my next appointment to see what the prognosis is.
My husband 77 was very fatigued and zero appetite.
Had 2 afib areas and flutter fixed by ablation - In nsr, then not. Had Cardioversion and took Amiodarone - In nsr, then not. Now taking Norvasc. What next???
If I can find nearby EP who does PFA, might that fix afib/flutters more successfully, or would it just be shorter recovery?
I'll know more when I have my follow-up, but I think the RFA fixed my flutter and I have been told that Afib can linger for awhile. Hoping to be taken off the Amiodarone. Besides the suspected side effects, my eye doctor would like me to get off it.
I'll know more when I have my follow-up, but I think the RFA fixed my flutter and I have been told that Afib can linger for awhile. Hoping to be taken off the Amiodarone. Besides the suspected side effects, my eye doctor would like me to get off it.
I started having AV Flutter in 1997. It escalated into Afib a year later. I wound up with a pacemaker. During a very severe episode of Afib and Flutter, my cardiologist decided to do an ablation on my right ventricle. But after starting, they found it was on the left side. They couldn't do it then, so they cardio-converted me.
Another comment regarding the results of a PFA procedure is that my EP told me, and it was listed in the discharge documents, that I may go in and out of Afib shortly after the procedure, but these Afib episodes should stop. It has been 3 weeks plus since the PFA procedure and no Afib episodes. My only complaint is a low pulse rate (mid 50s to mid 60s) and some fatigue, and I sometimes walk around like I am drunk. I am back to doing all of my ranch chores including stacking some bales of hay.
Another comment regarding the results of a PFA procedure is that my EP told me, and it was listed in the discharge documents, that I may go in and out of Afib shortly after the procedure, but these Afib episodes should stop. It has been 3 weeks plus since the PFA procedure and no Afib episodes. My only complaint is a low pulse rate (mid 50s to mid 60s) and some fatigue, and I sometimes walk around like I am drunk. I am back to doing all of my ranch chores including stacking some bales of hay.
Are you still taking a beta blocker or a calcium channel blocker per prescription? Some EPs want their patients to remain on a lowered dose of metoprolol, diltiazem, bisoprolol, or Sotalol for several weeks after an ablation, but the patient must self-monitor and report immediately any changes to their condition or symptoms. When a patient is in NSR (normal sinus rhythm) for many days after a so-far successful ablation, the heart may calm and find that it is suppressed by the chemical, meaning an artificially low heart rate. If that is the case, the EP may want you off of anything except the DOAC (apixaban or rivaroxaban) for stroke risk. Certainly by the time you get near your Holter monitor assessment, usually between Weeks 10-12, you would not want to have any residue in your system that controls heart rhythm or its rate. You and the EP would want a veridical assessment and record for several hours running of what your heart wants to do on its own in its current state.
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I was diagnosed with Afib in Dec 2024 and was asymptomatic. The Afib was detected while I was being prepped for cataract surgery. 2 weeks prior to this event I was in NSR. I went on Eliquis and Diltiazem, then Metoprolol the end of February instead of the Diltiazem. Had a successful cardioversion in early March and then in the last week in May had a successful pulse field ablation procedure. It was only during the PFA procedure that it was discovered that I also had flutter in addition to the Afib. Flutter was in both the left and right atrial. Again, I was asymptomatic and had no idea I had flutter. Regardless the PFA took care all of all of the known arrythmia problems and hopefully nothing comes back. I am still on Eliquis and Metoprolol which is pretty much standard protocol but will be off of these meds in about 2 more months.
As I think I replied to you, maybe to someone else in the last three days, I originally had AF that was moving quickly to persistent just as I got my first ablation. That ablation was a failure and I was in the local ER inside of six days! I was placed on amiodarone which got my heart back playing nice.
The Holter monitor that came eight weeks later showed a lot of PACs. Over the next two months, I experienced short runs of AF. Then, my wife and I purchased an SUV, and I found myself in AF while awaiting to sign the sales agreement. Stress. I went to the ER because it was going a long time and I felt terrible, and that was when the attending ordered adenosine. The chemical showed I was actually in flutter, not AF. So, I felt it, but a fellow churchgoer, very active, had no idea he was in flutter permanently until his doctor detected it. So, we're all different. I went from apparently successfully ablated AF to many PACs and then to flutter. This all took place over four months. I had a second ablation about six weeks after the detected flutter, and that was a success. No PACs, no flutter. I did have about six hours of AF at the 13th day, and was sent home to wait it out from the ER. It self-corrected, and that was the very last AF. Remember, during the blanking period, a heart might skip into and out of AF once or twice, but it should self-correct and it should be less than 24 hours. If it's more than 24 hours, especially with a determined rate above 100 BPM, you need to see a doctor.
So, yes, it took two ablations, and I had AF, then PACs, then flutter....and now none.
It wasn't until I got my pacemaker that I was diagnosed with Afib. I am apparently one of the lucky 30% who get it after getting a pacemaker. At my follow-up appointment they told me I also had flutter. I was having troublesome symptoms such as feeling my heart racing and just being constantly aware of the heartbeats. I had an ablation about a week ago and those symptoms went away, but I am still fatigued. My smart watch has detected some Afib, but I am not sure how reliable that is. Looking forward to my next appointment to see what the prognosis is.
My husband 77 was very fatigued and zero appetite.
Had 2 afib areas and flutter fixed by ablation - In nsr, then not. Had Cardioversion and took Amiodarone - In nsr, then not. Now taking Norvasc. What next???
If I can find nearby EP who does PFA, might that fix afib/flutters more successfully, or would it just be shorter recovery?
I'll know more when I have my follow-up, but I think the RFA fixed my flutter and I have been told that Afib can linger for awhile. Hoping to be taken off the Amiodarone. Besides the suspected side effects, my eye doctor would like me to get off it.
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I started having AV Flutter in 1997. It escalated into Afib a year later. I wound up with a pacemaker. During a very severe episode of Afib and Flutter, my cardiologist decided to do an ablation on my right ventricle. But after starting, they found it was on the left side. They couldn't do it then, so they cardio-converted me.
Another comment regarding the results of a PFA procedure is that my EP told me, and it was listed in the discharge documents, that I may go in and out of Afib shortly after the procedure, but these Afib episodes should stop. It has been 3 weeks plus since the PFA procedure and no Afib episodes. My only complaint is a low pulse rate (mid 50s to mid 60s) and some fatigue, and I sometimes walk around like I am drunk. I am back to doing all of my ranch chores including stacking some bales of hay.
Are you still taking a beta blocker or a calcium channel blocker per prescription? Some EPs want their patients to remain on a lowered dose of metoprolol, diltiazem, bisoprolol, or Sotalol for several weeks after an ablation, but the patient must self-monitor and report immediately any changes to their condition or symptoms. When a patient is in NSR (normal sinus rhythm) for many days after a so-far successful ablation, the heart may calm and find that it is suppressed by the chemical, meaning an artificially low heart rate. If that is the case, the EP may want you off of anything except the DOAC (apixaban or rivaroxaban) for stroke risk. Certainly by the time you get near your Holter monitor assessment, usually between Weeks 10-12, you would not want to have any residue in your system that controls heart rhythm or its rate. You and the EP would want a veridical assessment and record for several hours running of what your heart wants to do on its own in its current state.
I did, until I quit foods and drinks with caffeine. No meds needed.