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That would be my guess as well -- they just wanted to get you scheduled. If the monitor turns up something that would delay the Watchman then they can just give your slot to someone on the waiting list, but they don't expect that to happen.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
I can't really predict when it will be approved. The clinical trial is slated to end in 2021, but I wouldn't be surprised if it was approved before then. If I were you, I don't think I would wait for the FLX. It's better, but it's not THAT much better. The original Watchman is a sound device with a proven track record.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Thanks for that link, rocketritch. I'd forgotten about that thread. Louise, it will be the easiest procedure you've ever undergone. Figure maybe an hour total more or less, with half that being prep and coming out of the anesthesia. The only thing you'll have to deal with afterward is the one femoral vein puncture (vs two or more for an ablation). And now that TCAI has the collby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
My episodes reliably lasted 6 hours or less and I was a CHADS-Vasc 0, so no, I didn't fear strokes. Once they started to become more frequent and longer lasting, that changed and I went on warfarin, and then later Pradaxa when it was approved in the US. I was an EMT when my first episode occurred. I woke up at about 4am with a pounding heart rate of 180. It was very irregular, so I knewby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
It means the ablation was a success. First, episodes of afib during the first 3 months are common, expected, and don't mean the procedure failed. Second, any arrhythmia lasting less than 30 seconds doesn't really count, so to speak. It's not considered an actual episode. What you've experienced sounds like a pretty calm, perfectly normal blanking period. Don't sweat it. Yby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotewolfpack The LAA May be involved in long-standing persistent afibber, but it’s less likely to be so in paroxysmal cases. It's also very unlikely to be the sole source of afib for either category of patients. Stopping afib usually requires a PVI at a bare minimum.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
It's very unlikely that removing your LAA will stop your afib. It would protect you from strokes, but most likely your afib would continue. If you want to stop the afib you have three choices: drugs, ablation or a Maze procedure.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotekatesshadow Was the 2017 ablation your first? I thought AF could not be "cured." You are saying yours ended? "Ended" as in remission? And, did I see on another thread that you no longer take an anticoagulant? Not even close to my first. You might want to read this. In August 2018 I had a Watchman device implanted as part of a clinical trial of a new version of theby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotekatesshadow How long have you had AF? Since 2002 but an ablation with Dr. Natale in 2017 ended it, so call it 15 years.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotetango232 Besides the symptoms of a heart attack, when do you what calls for a a trip to the ER or ambulance? A heart rate over 200 Fainting or near fainting Difficulty breathing Dizziness Nausea/vomiting And last but not least... when you just can't take it anymoreby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
I've started sotalol three times without a hospital stay. It's a judgement call on the EP's part. Sotalol has the same risk of widening the QT as Tikosyn does, but to somewhat of a lesser degree. Being female makes the risk a bit higher, so that's probably why your doc would want you to start it in the hospital.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
It was new to all of us at one time. Hang around a while and soon you'll be answering other people's questions.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
If they're talking about a hospital stay to begin the drug then it's almost certainly dofetilide, brand name Tikosyn. It's usually fairly effective for most people and most people tolerate it well, but that hospital stay will determine whether you can take it at all or not. What they'll be watching is a measurement of your QT, which is basically how wide your heartbeat is oby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
The only interactions with CC blockers and anticoagulants is a possible enhancement of those drugs, and with diuretics possible increased magnesium levels. There are a lot of people with afib on this and other forums who take magnesium supplements along with those other drugs and I've never heard of anyone experiencing problems (I've taken mag with all of them and still do take them witby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotekatesshadow I just read that Magnesium could possibly interact with calcium channel blockers, diuretics and anticoagulant drugs. I take all of those (like most ppl with Afib. Can you show us what you read? Magnesium is commonly prescribed by EPs for people they also prescribe those other drugs for.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Orthostatic hypotension resolves as soon as you sit or lie down but Nancy said it continued through the night.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
The Atriclip does not treat afib. It closes off the LAA, which protects you from stroke, but it will have no effect whatsoever on your afib. Also, the Atriclip is a surgical procedure, so you would need a cardiothoracic surgeon, not a cardiologist.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
The spinning room you described sounds more like vertigo than dizziness caused by a heart issue. Vertigo is usually an inner ear problem.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Take the Xarelto. If you don't need it, it's harmless. If you need it, it's life saving.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
It's extremely unlikely that Cardizem (diltiazem) is causing the afib though it's not impossible. Cardizem is frequently used as a rate control drug for afib patients. Walk into any ER in the US with afib and it's likely that's the first thing you'll receive. If either drug is responsible (which I doubt), the flecainide would be a more likely culprit. You didn't sby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuotekatesshadowSo "quivering" is still beating, just faster? Well, no, not really. It's so uncoordinated that there is little, if any, effective pumping. The important thing to remember is that what your atria are doing isn't as important as what your ventricles are doing. During afib your atria are just quivering away, doing nothing useful, but your ventricles continue toby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotekatesshadow Question about persistent Afib.... does this mean your heart is quivering 24/7? So, the blood is pooling in the top chambers of your heart? Doesn't this cause heart failure pretty quickly? Yep, persistent afib means you're constantly in afib and have been for a week or more. After months of persistent afib, it's called longstanding persistent. And if you decby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotecolindo Do you know why afibbers are at a greater risk than non afibbers? Not really, no. That's one of the million dollar questions in cardiology these days. It's not really understood fully, but there's a growing consensus that there's an underlying atrial substrate that makes strokes more likely just as it makes afib more likely. The general term being used is atrialby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
That's why I put it in parentheses. Just saying what you would need to do to reduce your risk to the same as someone without afib.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuotePompon Persistent afib must be awful. Actually, a lot of people with persistent afib don't feel it at all. It's often diagnosed incidentally during an exam for some other issue. There don't seem to be many (any?) persistent afibbers here, but there are a number of them on stopafib.org and most report feeling few if any symptoms.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
No, it's not misleading. If you have afib, your stroke risk is about 5% per year on average, with that risk rising as your CHADS-Vasc goes higher (eg, the risk is 10% for a CHADS-VASC of 6). People without afib have about a 1% risk on average, so in fact it is about five times higher. If you take an anticoagulant, that cuts your risk roughly in half. It does NOT reduce it to the same level aby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Knowing the cause and effect would also be individual. A hard-core endurance athlete? Enlarged atria are probably the cause. A couch potato? Enlarged atria are probably the effect. When I say "more" or "less" afib I mean afib burden, which is just the percent of time spent in afib at a tachycardic rate. People with persistent afib who are on effective rate control don'by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotekatesshadow Magnesium (elemental) from Magnesium Taurate, Glycinate & Malate I thought it was better to pair Mg with Potassium and Taurine? Magnesium taurate, glycinate and malate aren't a pairing of supplements. Those are three forms of magnesium compounding. There's also mag oxide, citrate, and a few others.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Actually, a feeling of warmth or heat is listed as an uncommon side effect.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Don't feel deflated. Nobody can honestly call ablation a cure because it's just not, so credit Norma for being honest. Also credit Norma for being humble. You won't be in good hands -- you'll be in the best hands the world has to offer. Think of it this way: ablation is to afib what chemo and surgery are to cancer. None of them are cures, but they're the best chance youby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM