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Good post. I have worked in health care for over 30 years as an Occupational Therapy Asst. As with you, I question everything, research, ask questions, and am wary of our current medical industrial complex focusing on more drugs and a general reactive attitude as opposed to proactivity and prevention.
Had a triple CABG, atrial and mitral valve replacement, and atrial appendage ligation in Feb. 2025. Took 8 hrs and 45 min I'm told!
Have afib flutter and paroxysmal afib. I refused to take the drugs initially prescribed when d/c'd from hospital. Amiodrone, digoxin, due to side effects and as these are "last resort drugs". Also contraindicated with my plavix, aspirin, and metoprolol. It's like Dr's use a "medication cookbook"! Let alone not even discussing the meds with me.
Refused eliquis and all DOAC's prior to surgery and after. So, I'm researching EP's for ablation possibilities and timing. I have a new cardiologist who is going to do an ECG next week. Have had no other test to assess post surgical heart function
Replies to "Good post. I have worked in health care for over 30 years as an Occupational Therapy..."
You are a individual after my own heart--pardon the pun! I am trying to make peace with the condition of A-fib, even though less than a year ago I was "perfectly" healthy. Now I take a handful of pills morning and night. I originally took a diuretic because my B/P was a little elevated (120/80 is now the OMG figure that gets you medicated). Then the PCP thought my lipids were "borderline" so since I am OLD, she wanted to start a statin. I said NO and did my own version of garlic and red yeast rice plus fiber. Wonder of wonders, the numbers went down. Then I got a low dose calcium channel blocker for the borderline B/P. Then a diagnosis of A-fib got that changed to higher level calcium channel blocker and a DOAC! I added Magnesium, life-style changes and still had a cardioversion in December 2024. Then the PCP did a routine bone scan and decided that my mild "osteopenia" (a truly BS diagnosis for anyone over 70 since 75% of us have some version of it) needed a bone building medication. I said NO to that and started taking more calcium with vit D and K included. I take extra fiber to keep the system regular and then when I look pretty stable, the doctor gives me a lecture on the dosages that I must take becaues Big Pharma says that one size fits all whether you are a 240 pound man or a 135 pound woman! As any woman knows from wearing panty hose, ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL. So thank you for the feedback. I am trying to one: just try to reduce the anxiety of this A-fib as long as it is dormant for the time being, and two: take what I am comfortable with after reading the literature. Good luck with your new doc; hope he listens to you since nobody knows your body better than you!
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The two 'great' EPs that I know of in the USA are Dr. Andrea Natale, Texas Cardiac Arrhythmia Institute, Austin, and Dr. Pasquale Santangeli at Cleveland Clinic. Very highly rated, very skilled, complex cases. Natale was trained in Bordeaux, Fr, by the great living guru of all things EP, Dr. Pierre Jais. His understudy in France, also practicing at Bordeaux, is Dr. Hocini (female).