How is your chronic atrial fibrillation being treated?

I am not in your circumstances, although I am a 'recovering' AF patient. Two ablations, second was the one that has me in NSR for just over three years now.

I have seen posts by forumites claiming they accepted the recommendation of a cardioversion years into what was essentially permanent AF and.....darned if it didn't work! My experience, still very happily in the early 'paroxysmal' stage, was the opposite. None of them worked, four them. The longest I was in NSR was 16 hours, the shortest was that none of the three zaps brought me back to NSR. To add insult to injury, I came to from the dose of propofol just as the tech pressed the button for the third, and strongest, jolt. NOT a happy experience!!!

With your ejection fraction, possible/probable atrial and/or ventricular enlargement, but with a sound mitral valve (?), you might be a long shot for ablation, which is probably what you have been told? Guessing? In any event, usually ablating a long-standing persistent or permanent AF patient is at best a crap shoot. The very best EPs money can buy might do well, but that eliminates 90% of us.

A cardioversion is cheap medicine, and for many it actually works. I feel that, aside from the bother of that day if you elect to have one, it might work, and you otherwise lose only several hours of that day. And, further, an ablation might still work. Even if it reduces your burden by only 50%, that may delay any usual degradation of the myocardium, or what they call 'remodeling'. Again, you have much to gain, and only the cost and the bother of it all to lose. But, you'd have to meet that one EP within a short flight or a day's drive who feels he/she wants to try because their record of success for 'complex cases' is rather good.

Thank you so much for your wisdom and insight I really appreciate it.

@scaredkat
Fib. Cath. Cardioversion. No fib. Eliquis. Metprolol. Furosimide. Entresto.
Within last 3 months.

For Pete's Sake ---not Eliquis! Look up some case studies on patients taking Eliquis and the side effects then read a 2023 NIH study that was done citing the case studies!

@kndaustin71 Millions are safely on apixaban and rivaroxaban and doing very well. Some, a few, cannot tolerate it, but they learn of their intolerance soon enough. This is true for many medications, if not most of them.

Let's not put the cart before the horse.

@gloaming You didn’t lose 9 months playing paddy-cake with Neuro/ENT with appt 2-3 months apart, only to do diagnostic differentials & find the answer myself! Patients should always fact check, question & seek second opinions! Cynical yes! But those 9 months cost a lot of deconditioning

@kndaustin71 I and millions have taken it, event free, for years. I am about to start my ninth year on it. If it is prescribed, on what basis would a person refuse it unless trialing it? And, if it works and is tolerated, why not continue it for the reasons eliciting the prescription?

"Thoughts and Feedback" were requested in the original posting. I gave my thoughts and feedback and am not into having a running debate on the pros and cons re Big Pharma and uses/side effects. I do wish @scaredkat the best of luck. Scaredkat has the right to hear the good, bad and ugly, discuss with physician/pharmacist and other patients then make an informed decision.

Please read the postings on Blood and Heart Health today re Eliquis and judge not no so harshly!

@kndaustin71 I HAVE read them. I have also read many posts by thousands who are safely taking it. Your warning might only be cautionary, but it certainly didn't come across that way...it came across as judgemental, the very thing you criticize me for doing. Additionally, you took your experience as an indication of what this other person was going to go through without knowing a single thing about them. On what basis do you advise them not to take Eliquis, which is what your post sounded like....to me. '...For Pete's Sake ---not Eliquis!...' Unless you're the poster's doctor, you have no business using that kind of syntax on this forum.