heart failure an a-fib

thanks for the comments I see the heart failure doctor wed. and will ask questions, my ejection fraction is 45 it was 13 before Cleveland did the 3rd lead but as you know I am in a-fib all the time and they claim its not causing harm I cant find anything on the internet saying a-fib causes no heart problems? I have been in a-fib now for about 4 years started slow and went off the wall. scared that at my age 66 but in great shape and fit except my heart, they are not doing any thing to stop the a-fib. they claim it all over the top of my heart and cant pin point a spot to do ablation has any one heard of this? they also cant tell me why I have a-fib or what is causing it?

3 Comments

afib all the time

by Theknotguy - 2014-11-17 02:11:05

While foods can trigger episodic afib genetics also plays a role. Last discussion with my EP was that my grandparents swam in the wrong gene pool. They have been unable to pin down any reason for my afib, nor can I identify any food that will consistently trigger a session. I have learned to stay away from caffeine and dark chocolate. And, for some odd reason, the onset of catching a minor bug or having a cold will trigger an afib session for me. The strangest one is after they test my PM at the periodic reading at the EP's office will trigger an afib session the next day. Something about messing around with my standard heart rhythm kicks me into afib.

Some of us can tolerate afib fairly well. The joke in the family is if I go into afib I take another pill. If anyone else goes into afib we make an emergency run to the hospital.

Even though you may not feel that way, consider yourself lucky that you can tolerate afib and not have a massive stroke or any other problem. And, unfortunately for some the only answer doctors have is to leave you in afib. Not comfortable but it's better than having the heart stop.

In a previous post I told you about Medtronic and APP. (Atrial Preference Pacing). You will still want to check it out with your EP. Question in my mind is if they chose Medtronic because they have the APP feature.

As I indicated in the previous post, they turned on the APP feature and it did reduce my afib sessions over time. That includes the almost once-a-day flutter I used to get where I was in afib for a few seconds.

I hope they can get answers for you quickly.

Afib causes/triggers

by NormaLou - 2014-11-17 12:11:16

Hi Ella,
My EP can't tell me either why I have A-fib. I KNOW mine is triggered by digestive problems--GERD and constipation. He says it has nothing to do with it. But I have talked to others with Afib who say theirs is triggered by GERD and other digestive probs.

It is an electrical problem, but there are triggers that cause me to go into Afib. Mine is eipsodic and only happens occasionally. I can tell when the episodes begin and when they are over.

I'm not on anti-coags because they tell me my Afib is "controlled" b/c my HR never goes above 95 during an episode and they only last anywhere from 8-14 hrs before my heart converts itself. They tell me if I was in Afib all the time I would need anti-coag meds.

Have you had a stress test or heart echo? Those tests can tell you about the condition of your heart function.

Good luck.

Afib

by golden_snitch - 2014-11-18 02:11:32

Hi!

Don't blame the doctors. Afib is a crazy arrhythmia. EPs do not really understand Afib, yet. They still cannot explain its whole mechanism, but they are putting much effort into trying to figure it out. What they do know is that, it seems that extra beats coming from the pulmonary veins are one of the main triggers of Afib. So, that's why they do those pulmonary vein isolations (PVI, catheter ablation). But it's not that they identify the spot, that's actually causing the Afib, and then ablate this. No, they just electrically isolate the pulmonary veins to stop extra beats coming from the veins. And studies at the moment show that in patients with permanent and longstanding Afib PVIs are not as successful as in patients with paroxysmal Afib (that comes and goes). In patients with paroxysmal Afib you have PVI success rates of around 70%, but in patients with permanent Afib the success rate can be as low as 20%-40%.

So, it's understandable that this treatment has not been offered to you, yet. And actually, your doctors are acting very responsible here, because PVIs are tricky and are associated with more risks than other catheter ablations. So, it's good that they are not offering you something that's most likely not a cure, and especially not after just one procedure. However, when you are VERY symptomatic and all other treatment options have failed, you could still discuss PVIs as an option - and I'm sure that in this case your doctors would be willing to give it a try.

Afib per se is not a life threatening arrhythmia. Yes, it can cause blood clots, but the arrhythmia itself will not lead to your heart stopping suddenly. So, what's most important is to prevent blood clots; the arrhythmia itself is only treated in the symptomatic patient.

Inga

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