Ablation to have or not to have

Hi Viber, just wanted to say how much I appreciated your message, especially writing it only 3 days after your ablation! I had my first PAF episode a year ago, they weren't very often at first but over the last 3 months have varied between daily and every second day. My symptoms were very unpleasant and scary at first but have reduced quite a bit since I've been on Bisoprolol and Diltiazem, altho not in frequency. I live in NZ and have not been very happy with my Cardiologist, he said he would not refer me for an ablation, so in Sept I am flying to another city to have a private appointment with an EP. I am 68 and kept fit before my AF started. I now find it difficult to walk for more than 20mins because I get breathless or feel dizzy/faint with palpitations. I'm really considering asking if I can have an ablation because I too want my life back, so reading your message made me even more sure that I want to give it a go. Thankyou, please let us know how you get on post ablation. All the best. Maggie

Hello maggie 34838. Thanks for reading my post and I'm now on my third day post ablation and I feel really good. I know from the AFA., website that there are people who say that they have problems post ablation, but I can honestly say that I feel

100%. As you will of read from my last post, I didn't suffer very much even when I

Was having an episode of AF. I was still going on my bike ride every evening and to be honest I never got breathless. I used to feel that I had less energy when I was in AF., but to varying degrees. When I was referred to a cardiology deparment at Manchester Royal Infirmary, after having a seven day mobile ECG., monitor, I had a consultation with a cardiologist and to be honest I was under the impression that he

was trying to talk me out of having an ablation, just by the fact that he asked me

what age are you. I told him I was 65, but that I was an individual and that my

physical condition was not the same as every 65 year old guy. I also told him that I

wanted to go back to work and he asked me, how long do you intend working for. I

told him as long as I could get work and as long as I felt I could do the type of work

I do. I got the feeling I was having an interview not a consultation, but from my

experience, you have to be positively minded. I get the impression that the medical people try to pass you off as being too old and can exist on medication. Well I'm a

very strong minded person, who has a very positive attitude to my fitness and

therefore will not let someone dictate that they know whats best for me. The EP.,

that did my procedure, I couldn't praise him more, he told me he was very postive

about what the outcome for me would be post ablation because when he saw me

for the first time, he realised I was not the normal overweight out of condition 65

year old. So if your positive, be pushy and I'm sorry you think you hsve to have a

private consultation to try to get an ablation. Also if you do go ahead with it, ask

questions of the EP.,who you will be refrred to. Ask how many he/she has done and

what % rate of success they have acheived. Also ask what procedure they will use

I don't know about NZ.,but there are three procedures for PAF., radio frequency,

which is old technology, cryo-ablation, which is what I had and laser ablation,

which is the latest procedure. My EP., I've got to mention his name because I think he warrants mentioning because all his staff praise him for his qualities, his name

is Dr. Muhyaldeen. I had local anaesthetic and sedation and although some of the procedure was uncomfortable and a little bit of pain, but that was my fault, as they

told me to let them know if I felt anything and they would give me more, but I just

put up with it. Having ablation is probably not the same for everyone, but having

said that, if I had to have it again I wouln't hesitate, although my EP., is very

confident that I will not have any reccurence of AF, hopefully. I didn't take any

medication prior to ablation, apart from Aspirin and my EP., said after procedure,

he only wanted me on Apixaban for the three month settling down period. I feel so

good now after only three days post ablation I feel as though I never had AF., in my

life before. I'll keep you posted periodically Maggie and if what I've experienced is

all ablation is, go for it Maggie, nothing to worry about and be positive thinking

about getting your life back on track

All the best

Viber(John)

Hi Viber I am in such a position at the moment - to have or not to have. I am due a catheter ablation in a few weeks time and reading the various submissions on this forum regarding the success rate and the various problems people have had I am in limbo wondering what to do. Having had just one incident of AF since September last year my problems with it seem insignificant compared to some and at my age (77) I am wondering whether I should stay on my medication or should I go for it?  My problems at the moment relate to blood pressure and periodic palpitations. My medication comprises 5mg Bisoprolol, 2.5mg Ramipril, and various doses of Warfarin. I am also taking 20mg Pantoprazole. It was very interesting reading about your experiencies and the eventual outcome which is somewhat reassuring.

I to am fairly fit and play golf two or three times a week. If I do 'go for it' I hope my results compare favourably with yours. Best Regards Joiner

Excuse the spelling mistakes please, doing this sat on a wall and on a fiddly little qwerty keyboard.

Hi maggie, my EP., told me that he would put me on warfarin post ablation. I saked him if it was possible to have one of the newer anticoagulants as I didn't want to be going for blood tests every two weeks. He said noproblem and put me on apaxiban 5.mg, from what I can gather here in the UK., warfarin costs pennies, any other anticoagulant costs pounds, but so does going for blood tests every couple of weeks,

so it doesn't seem logical to me taking warfarin. One cardiologist that wrote on a

report that was to my GP., she said that because of my age she was recommending that my GP., put me on warfarin sometime in the future. I told her there and then

that I wasn't going on warfarin and that there were new anticoagulants that had

been approved for use on the NHS. She said to me that they didn't know what the

long term affects of the new medications would be. She actually said to me and I

couldn't believe what I was hearing, they may cause cancer in the long term and

that because there wasn't any long term feed back about the new drugs,

nobody knew of the possible effects of taking them. I presume that when they

develop new drugs in this day and age, they must be aware of any possible long

term problems that they may cause. I told her that seeing as I was nearly 65,

what would long term reflect on me. It's all about cost and nothing else, so if your

not pushy here they will try to palm you off with the cheapest alternative.

Obviously not enough patients question doctors, I know personally many people

who are on warfarin and thats just because there docotrs have prescribed it and

they either don't have the knowledge about the newer anticoagulants or they

just accept what there GP's say, I have always asked questions in my life, thats

the way to learn and not be fobbed off. Hope this helps you.

Regards

Viber

Hi maggie, thats something to think about, but myslef I've been in more

predicaments on airplanes and traveling around the world to let something like no antidote be in my thoughts. Also had some close shaves whilst working under the oceans and seas of the world, so I tend to take whatever life throws at me. I think

that you would have to be very unlucky if medical access was reasonably

accessible to bleed to death. I don't know what the position is with regard to no

antidote, but I don't think for one minute that any medical profession would prescribe any medication that if you had a bleed of some sort you were guranteed to bleed

to death, just my thoughts, but its best for your peace f mind if you decide warfarin

is best for you. Also I'm hoping that after three months of maybe less my EP.,will

stop my anticoagulant medication.

Regards

viber