For those that had an ablation..?

Hi again Patricia.

I had an ablation 5 years ago. It completely cured my SVT and I've not taken any heart meds since.

I was mildly sedated during the ablation but not unconscious so I can remember it. You will get a 'chill pill' of some kind and then they will bring you to the theatre. They will give you a local where the top of your leg meets your groin and then insert the device there. They manoeuvre it to your heart (not painful, just weird), trigger SVT briefly, and then use it to 'burn away' the unwanted tissue that allows SVT to happen (I didn't feel that at all). They will try to again trigger SVT, but hopefully they wont be able to and you will be cured.

The whole thing took less than an hour in my case (maybe only 30 minutes in the theatre). I don't really remember any pain at all at the entry site afterwards, or having any problems walking or anything. But I was having aggressive chemo at the time so was an in-patient and feeling pretty awful anyway, so the ablation might have seemed less difficult than for other people.

I think many go home the same day as the ablation, and most within about a day. 

You are bound to feel tired for a while from the stress and the meds, but I think that's gone within a few days for most people.

It is normal to have a few 'phantom' SVT-like thuds and jitters for a month or so afterwards while your heart heals (just like SVT is about to kick in, but it never does).

It is brilliant to no longer be a prisoner of SVT. Hope yours goes as well as mine!

I had a sore groin and that was about it. I had frequent PVCs as well after, though I also had frequent PVCs before... They did seem worse after for a month or so but it's hard to say because I've had plenty of periods where they've been bad before. I also had a fair bit of anxiety and for a while was afraid to stress my heart or do much. I am anxiety prone and this procedure really got my anxiety focusing on my heart. I also was dehydrated right after because my procedure had been delayed for hours and I hadn't had any fluid since the night before. In recovery my blood pressure would tank when I'd sit or stand so I had to get a whole liter of saline before they'd discharge me. 

But other than that I felt pretty much fine. I had some light versed during the procedure, and some painkillers once they started injecting, but that wore off pretty quick. I found recovery to be a breeze other than the mental aspect of it. The groin soreness was mild and kept me from biking for a week or so but wasn't enough to keep me from getting around just fine normally. 

I had my ablation last October. I was completely asleep when they did it. You may or may not spend the night. They go through both groins. Afterwards you have to keep your legs still for 4 hours and they check you frequently for any bleeding or swelling, which I didn't have. 

I was a little short of breath on exertion for 3 months and tired. I could drive after a couple of days. 

After the ablation had a feeling of fullness in my chest. That lasted about a month. I was told that not everyone has symptoms after an ablation. 

 

Also, I was told that I might have palpitations after the ablation while the heart is healing and I was told that it takes the heart 4 months to heal from an ablation. 

Thank you very much for this info