![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
![]() |
Nobody has that number unless they have access to his entire patient files, and I'm entirely sure it's nowhere near 100%. Not sure where you got that idea. He determines that LAA isolation is necessary by finding that afib signals are originating from the LAA. It's an entirely objective decision based on what he observes with a mapping catheter inside your heart. No afib comingby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
After 5 failures over the course of 7 years, it took me at least six months of NSR just to start believing it might have been successful, and a full year before I really did believe it. It took another year for me to take the battery out of my Kardia and put it in a desk drawer. Put the Kardia away and quit wearing the Apple Watch; they just make things worse. You'll know if you go backby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Junctional bradycardia (JB ) does increase stroke risk, particularly in the absence of a P wave. However, your heart rate is normal during your episodes so you don't have JB. I doubt if you face any significantly increased stroke risk from this arrhythmia. I've never heard of a junctional rhythm with a slow or normal heart rate being treated with ablation. The usual treatment for JBby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
That doesn't change the answer because I don't think I've ever heard of an EP in Alaska or Hawaii being discussed here. If you're good with anyone in the lower 48, why not choose the best there is? People usually only want to limit the choices to keep it local or at least limit distance. So if you at least named a geographic area like the west coast or east coast or south oby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteKwilk What other EP's have been recommended by forum members? Many, but where are you asking about?by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
I wouldn't be self-dosing with this one. I'd say people need to consult the EP who prescribed their anticoagulant and understands the individual medical issues. Clotting risk, bleeding risk, and kidney and liver function would all be considerations. Way above the pay grade of anyone here.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Urine yes, diarrhea no. Afib causes the atria to produce atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP), which in turn signals the kidneys to excrete more urine. But diarrhea isn't part of that process and isn't how the body regulates water. Maybe you tend to get diarrhea during an episode, but I don't know why and that's not your body intentionally trying to dump water.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Yep, thank you for clarifying what I meant.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
No. Something else is going on.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Second attempts, often called "touch up" procedures, are common and usually have a much higher success rate. Even top EPs will tell their patients that a touch up may be required. So you're on the right track and you can trust your EP's advice.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
The Eliquis dosage probably needs to be reduced while you're taking Paxlovid. Here's what the FDA monograph on Paxlovid says abour apixaban and Paxlovid together: QuoteCombined P-gp and strong CYP3A4 inhibitors increase blood levels of apixaban and increase the risk of bleeding. Dosing recommendations for co-administration of apixaban with PAXLOVID depend on the apixaban dose.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Interesting study with impressive results, but also a very small study. Hard to conclude much with confidence from just 53 people. I wonder if anyone has replicated it but don't really have the time to check. But if I had a TENS unit and was suffering from PACs or afib, I would give it a try. Unless you have an implanted device in your head or neck, I doubt there's any risk, but I woby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
I'll be very surprised if you stopped the meds and your afib remained in remission. That's probably wishful thinking. Recurrent afib 6 months after an ablation generally indicates that it was at best only partially successful. It's not going to get any better from there. From your original description I'd say your ablation succeeded in reducing afib burden but not eliminatingby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Nice find, but my reading would be that simply targeting fibrosis for ablation is a misguided approach. Yes, fibrosis is probably key to the underlying disease, but simply ablating all the fibrotic tissue is a shotgun approach. Just because it's fibrotic doesn't mean it's a source of afib. Any approach that involves destroying tissue probably needs to be very specific and targetedby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Tough decision. I agree that the flecainide and Cardizem are unlikely to be effective forever, and amiodarone is almost never a good long-term solution unless it's a life threatening condition, which this isn't. What do the two EPs who are willing to "see what can be done" mean by that? I would imagine what they mean is they'll do their due diligence with a Holter moniby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotegloaming When I relayed that to my internist, who is also my referred cardiologist (not my EP), he said rather sharply, "Well, that's not true at all!" It is true. Being asymptomatic with paroxysmal afib is unusual, but being asymptomatic with persistent afib is common. I don't know why so many general cardiologists refuse to learn anything about afib once they'by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
I think your summary is pretty spot on. On a practical level, I doubt we'll see LAA shape used widely to assess stroke risk since determining LAA shape requires an MRI, CT or TEE, all of which are expensive and time consuming, and two of which are invasive.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
You found some interesting papers, Kwilk. One thing to keep in mind with regard to loss of function from an ablation is that the atria only contribute a relatively small amount of pumping action. I've heard 15% discussed as the number that "atrial kick" contributes to cardiac output, but I don't know where that number comes from and don't know if there's any trutby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Sadly, no, and it's my biggest complaint with the forum.by Carey - GENERAL HEALTH FORUM
Well, I've got no idea what to say since I have no idea what's going on with him. By any chance is he undergoing a Maze procedure?by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
I think what your friend meant was epicardial ablation. Easy mistake to make since the ablation involves entering the pericardial space, so I'm sure the doctors used both words in the same conversation. This is how it works. Did your friend have afib or something else? Epicardial ablations are usually used for arrhythmias they believe are originating on the outside walls of the heart,by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Quotesusan.d Re: AV-node ablation (AVNA) VS AV-node isolation (AVNI)? Which one is better to get enough of a safety margin if my pacemaker gets accidentally damaged? I want to preserve my escape rhythm (20hr?) …right? Normally, a properly done AV node ablation preserves the Bundle of His (BoH) and therefore the escape rhythm, but the BoH can be damaged in the procedure even when done by an expeby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Jill, yes, I will eventually get the Shingrix vaccine, but I just got the bivalent COVID booster on Wednesday, so it won't be for a few weeks. Interestingly, I was expecting quite a reaction to the booster because my previous booster produced a significant one, but not this time. All I experienced was a mild headache-y feeling the next morning and not much else.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
I'm skeptical of that advice. Half dose Eliquis has a very low bleed risk, and Plavix is an antiplatelet drug like aspirin, which makes it prone to produce GI bleeds. But I don't have numbers at hand for that particular scenario so I can't say with certainty that I would stick with 1/2 dose Eliquis, but that's my inclination.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
You have three major pacemakers in the heart: the SA node, the AV node, and the Bundle of His (BoH). They are listed from top to bottom of the heart. The SA node is your normal pacemaker, but the AV node will take over if it isn't receiving signals from the SA node above it. It will beat at a slower rate, around 40-60 bpm. If the BoH isn't receiving signals from the AV node above it, itby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
It's extremely difficult for my wife to vomit. I can count maybe once or twice in the 45 years I've known her. And she doesn't have so much as a hint of afib and I doubt she ever will.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
LOL... You're really going to rub that one in, aren't you? Personally, I think atrial cardiomyopathy is redundant. The word atrial already identifies the heart, so the cardio prefix is redundant, but clearly the cardiology world doesn't agree with me.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteThe Anti-Fib Yea right, quit checking BP will make hypertension not there. Having elevated BP after a stressful event isn't hypertension; it's perfectly normal. If he's getting normal readings at other times -- and he is -- then there's no reason to be compulsively checking BP, and especially not when normal physiology says it's going to be elevated.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
Okay, so looking around I see that older sources did use the term atrial cardiomyopathy and even a few newer ones still do. My mistake. But the generally accepted term now is atrial myopathy (because the cardio part is redundant). In a few years I figure it will become the single word atrialmyopathy and my spell checker will stop flagging it.by Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM
QuoteLoisA but my EP does not think much of his work Frankly, I would consider that a red flag for your EP. You do what you think is right for you, but when a doctor tells you he doesn't think much of the work of one of the world's most experienced, respected, highly published EPs, you really have to wonder why. As for Pinsky, I don't know what reviews you're talking abby Carey - AFIBBERS FORUM