Best thing for your BP is just to get a meter from the drugstore or Walmart and take daily measurements at fixed times. You’ll quickly see what your real BP is without the white coat effect. What type of diuretic? You might want I ask for a potassium sparing one. HCTZ (hydrochlorothiazide) is notorious for shedding potassium, if in fact that’s what you’re on. As for your friend on flec, witby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotekatesshadow Someone above suggested taking a beta blocker if I happen to go into Afib at Disney. I am taking one every day for BP. I assuming that helps prevent an episode? It does not. A beta blocker is a rate control medication. It slows your heart down. AF is very chaotic, but in a broad sense the atria are probably trying to go at something like 300 beats per minute whenby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotekatesshadow I want there to be a clear black/white reason for everything. We all do. As it happens, matters of the heart are more complicated. What subtle irony!by wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotekatesshadow Now I'm realizing this is something I need to pay attention to. Yes. You control a-fib or it controls you. The good news is, a-fib is controllable.by wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Yeah, just use the zinc lozenges if you feel a head cold coming on. As for the blood numbers, it's important to remember that potassium and magnesium exist primarily INSIDE the body's cells. Measuring the serum (blood) levels will certainly indicate a problem if either value is low, but normal serum values don't really provide insight into what's going on inside cells. Therby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Most likely coincidence. Your heart "skipping beats" for the month prior to your first recorded AF episodes were most likely PACs (premature atrial contractions) which are almost invariably the prelude to full blown AF. It's a sign that the electrical conduction in your heart's atria is getting away from what's normal. Barring any structural heart disease, that'sby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Yes, you can diagnose AF just by checking your pulse. AF is "irregularly irregular". It'll be something like beat, beat, beat, pause, beat, beat, pause, beat, beat, beat, beat, pause. It won't be something like beat, pause, beat, pause, beat, pause or beat, beat, pause, beat, beat, pause or anything else that has a distinct pattern to it. AF is quite random in terms of when thby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotekatesshadow Thanks Wolfpack! We are leaving for Disneyworld on Sunday. When I asked the cardiologist, she said "No problem" that I should be able to ride anything. But......she added it might bring on an episode of afib. Yikes. Which, I didn't even ask what I was supposed to do if it did??? Your original post said you were on BP meds and Eliquis. Is that it? Whatby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotebolimasa I kind wondered if I rushed into ablation I'm not sure it's even possible to rush into ablation with an experienced and renowned EP such as yours. Don't lose a wink of sleep over that. Quotebolimasa Another thought on the feeling of doom... While it's commonly thought that an anxiety triggers AFib... I got the feeling that for me the AFib triggered anxietyby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Yep. Stress = afib = stress = afib... You get the idea. ERs are crappy places to treat AF, so take nothing away from what you experienced there. Find a good cardiologist whom you can trust and who will listen. Don’t be afraid to fire one or more along the way. As time goes on, you may want to partner with an EP for treatment. Ignore everything but experience when and if it comes to ablationby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteElizabeth But, it is being said on here that cardioversion is the first line of defense for AF, I have been coming to this board for many years never heard that, don't believe Hans ever said that. It is among ER docs and many cardiologists. EPs perhaps not so much. They may be willing to try chemical cardioversion with anti-arrythmics. Depends on whom you meet. Always ask. QuoteElby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
It’s a Chinese herb. I’ve never tried it, but I believe you make a tea out of it. Left unsweetened, it will probably taste like motor oil. If you want to try it, I’d suggest carefully reasearching the supply chain. I, for one, try my darndest not to put anything in my mouth that comes from China. The risk of contamination is just too great in my opinion. Unfortunately, many supplements have beenby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Tell the gastro’s nurse about the AF history and request the GoLytely prep solution.by wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
A cardiologist isn’t really qualified to suggest a type of ablation rather than ablation itself. He or she simply doesn’t do the procedure. That would be an electrophysiologist (EP). Certainly make an appointment with one, but be aware that cryobaloon is more limited than radio-frequency (RF) and is limited to pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) only.by wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
I was 40, male, fit, and running 35-40 miles/week when my AF started. It was always at night either right before bed or in my sleep. Laying my left side was pretty much an “on switch” for it. It always converted in the morning either by itself or with a little bit of exercise. Alcohol never triggered it. Oddly enough, I found that 2 beers would actually terminate an evening episode for me. Try teby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
It probably depends on where. I’d guess major cities, yes. Rural hospitals? Maybe not quite yet. That will change. The bigger deal probably will be cost over availability. DOAC reversal agents will continue to cost tens of thousands of dollars for years to come. More important to understand is that while warfarin is reversible with vitamin K, that process still take almost a day. Eliquis’ halfby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotekarin He noted that Eliquis will stay in the system for 12 hours, so agreed there is a risk of excessive bleeding from a car accident too and no way to stop this effect. This is a common fear, and one that might be a bit irrational as well. I’ve shared it myself and have come to reconsider over time. If you, or anyone, suffers trauma resulting in significant hemorrhage then your chances oby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
It’s guaranteed. Take a moment to visualize what has happened inside of your heart during an ablation. The thin atrial tissue has been seriously inflamed by either burning with what equates to a hand-held soldering iron, or frozen with a sub-zero balloon. If either of those two things happened to a sensitive part of your skin, say, your inside forearm, how long would that be irritable? A good,by wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuotePompon PVCs can often be ablated. This means going down passed the valves? Not very reassuring, IMO... It does. The good news is PVCs can be very focal, meaning just a little burn is required. It’s not a “scatter plot” like the left atrium can be. The operator does need to be careful not to tear or damage the valves, however. Yet another reason that skill matters.by wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteCarey We tried various drugs, including combinations of ACE inhibitors and ARBs (a no no), ACE inhibitors and ER K+ supplements (a big no no), and eventually K+ supplements plus spironolactone (a huge no no). I hope you avoided shopping for a bra!by wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
I’ll throw out a guess and say that those with extensive lesion sets in the left atrium, extending well beyond the normal pulmonary vein isolation to include areas such as the posterior wall and left-atrial appendage, might experience significant conduction abnormalities as charge propagates from the sino-atrial node in the right atrium across the more heavily scarred left atrium, and this abnormby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
The potential danger comes from bolusing yourself with too much potassium at once. Mechanically fracturing a tablet defeats the cellulose coatings in various thicknesses that effect the slow release. That being said it’s very tough to overdose orally and 20 mEq isn’t that much to begin with. I would not recommend grinding a tablet into a powder and snorting it. I would also not use one as a suby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Is the SVT diagnosis from St David’s? I recall you posted in a previous thread about it but were unsure as to what the actual rhythm was. If you’ve received a diagnosis from them it may be helpful to share whatever level of detail you are comfortable with.by wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
You can be encouraged by the statistics that show athletes with AF respond quite favorably to ablation. Like Carey said, it’s not going to change the treatment but it would be good to pair with an EP who is at least aware of that fact. Being in the UK, as I understand it, a first ablation is most likely to be done by cryoballoon. If possible, I’d suggest finding an RF operator but in any case doby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Happy Thanksgiving to all! I’ll be lucky to stay in NSR after all the sodium-laden food and beer. Fingers crossed and, what the heck, it only comes once a year!by wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
HCTZ is a very mild diuretic and also not a potassium-sparing one. Not a great drug for an afibber.by wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteKleinkp RF for paroxysmal what can make it more effective then the ballon? Thanks! It’s always going to come down to operator skill. An expert with a balloon could easily outperform a greenhorn with RF. That being said, take a moment to think about the tools and how they work. The balloon inflates, gets cold, and makes a big lesion all at once. If this lesion is both continuous andby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteJoe How do they establish the source of the stray electrical impulses prior to actually going in with a catheter and therefor be in a position to choose if cryo or RF is the best way to do the job? They don't, because it's not possible. The only way to map the electrical activity inside the heart is to be inside the heart with the mapping catheter. At that point you've choseby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteJakeL I would suspect that when you request your local records to be sent to Dr Natale your local EP/Cardiologist will know of the request but should not challenge you as the patient making the request. Unlikely he or she would even know of the request. It'll be handled by front office folks. Also, it'd be illegal for them (or any doctor in this country) to not honor the requesby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotetsco The most effective and easiest is my prescription from Natale post ablation for potassium chloride m20 Er 20 meq. I take a half tablet about 3 or 4 days a week. I firmly believe it makes me feel better, helps pac's, helps to stabilize my heart. Are you certain the formulation is ER (extended release)? If that's the case, there may be some danger in cutting the tablet in halfby wolfpack - AFIBBERS FORUM