This September, StopAfib.org marks the third year of celebrating Atrial Fibrillation Month to raise awareness of atrial fibrillation (afib), an expensive and life-threatening irregular heartbeat that is a common cause of stroke.

StopAfib.org founder, Mellanie True Hills, knows the toll that atrial fibrillation takes on those with it and their families. After surviving blood clots and a near-stroke during her first afib episode, she lived in constant fear of her next, always wondering if a deadly stroke was inevitable. As a patient who was unable to stabilize on Coumadin® (warfarin), a challenging blood thinner that helps avoid strokes, she was frightened that she was “a stroke walking around waiting to happen.”

Once she was cured surgically of this common cardiac arrhythmia, she couldn’t stand on the sidelines and watch others suffer so she started StopAfib.org, for patients by patients. StopAfib.org helps those living the nightmare of atrial fibrillation.

Since afib frequently isn’t diagnosed until after a stroke, or two, and identifying the problem can be a multi-year process, she has a sense of urgency around raising awareness of atrial fibrillation that only an afib survivor can possess.

Learn more about Atrial Fibrillation Month and living with afib at:
September 2009 is Atrial Fibrillation Month: StopAfib.org patient resource raises awareness of expensive and life-threatening irregular heartbeat

Please help us with Afib Month in the following ways:

• Contact Us to alert us to any special Afib Month events so we can post them to the Atrial Fibrillation Month Events Calendar
• Tell others about afib and where to learn more
• If you know a journalist or reporter that can help spread the word, or if you, or someone you know, has a blog that can help, please Contact Us so we can arrange something
• Bring attention to Atrial Fibrillation Month by bookmarking this story at your favorite bookmarking sites — it’s easy, just by clicking on the “Share” button below you can select your favorite bookmarking sites
• Let us know what stories you see about afib this month

Stay tuned…there’s more coming. Let’s get some buzz going about atrial fibrillation this month. Thanks for your help in spreading the word about atrial fibrillation and helping to wipe out afib-related strokes.

Tags: Advocacy, Events, General, High blood pressure, Mellanie True Hills, Prevention, Sleep Apnea by Mellanie
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There is a lot of big news coming out of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) going on in Barcelona right now. Judging by attendance, this is probably the biggest cardiology event in the world.

The big announcement for atrial fibrillation sufferers is the progress towards a replacement for Coumadin (warfarin) coming out of the results of the Randomized Evaluation of Long-Term Anticoagulant Therapy trial, known as the RE-LY trial.

Trial results showed that dabigatran, a potential Coumadin® replacement that is marketed under the brand name of Pradaxa outside the U.S., is more effective than warfarin at preventing strokes from clotting (ischemic stroke) and bleeding (hemorrhagic stroke).

This is great news for those with atrial fibrillation who are on warfarin as it is so difficult and time-consuming to manage that most who are on it are only in the therapeutic range (INR between 2.0 and 3.0) two-thirds of the time.

Also of interest is the new Stroke Prevention channel on You Tube that Boehringer Ingelheim, the manufacturer of dabigatran, launched in conjunction with the release of the study findings.

Read more and get the link to some stroke prevention videos at: Dabigatran Better than Warfarin for Stroke Prevention in Atrial Fibrillation

Tags: Anticoagulation, Medication, Resources, Study, Treatment by Mellanie
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A study of radio-frequency catheter ablation by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) was one of the first government-mandated Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER) studies released. The report found that catheter ablation appears effective up to one year after the procedure, but more research is needed into longer-term success as well as the impact on stroke and with certain populations. In addition, we need to know whether patients can have catheter ablation for afib as their first treatment rather than waiting for medications to fail before considering it. If you’re thinking about getting a catheter ablation, this report holds a wealth of information for you.

Read:  Is Radio-frequency Catheter Ablation for Atrial Fibrillation Ready for Prime Time with Patients and Doctors — Share Your Opinion

After you have read the article, please come back here and add your comments below for our discussion at the AHRQ conference on 9/14/09.

Tags: Catheter ablation, Resources, Study, Treatment by Mellanie
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Sleep apnea is an important risk factor for atrial fibrillation. It is also associated with hypertension, coronary artery disease, heart failure, stroke, diabetes, and insulin resistance, all of which are risk factors for, or results of, atrial fibrillation.

Now a new study has just reported that men between the ages of 40 and 70 who have severe sleep apnea have twice the risk of death as men without sleep apnea. Though women are probably also at increased risk, the study did not have enough women with sleep apnea to draw conclusions regarding an association between sleep apnea and death.

Sleep apnea is believed to impact about one in four men and one in ten women, and most are not aware that they have the problem. The article below contains very important information for both men and women with afib.

Read: Severe Sleep Apnea Doubles Risk of Death in Men — Implications for Those with Atrial Fibrillation

Tags: Causes or Triggers, High blood pressure, Prevention, Sleep Apnea, Symptoms, Treatment by Mellanie
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Join Clear Lake Regional Medical Center in Houston as they present an A-fib education dinner event.

Details at: Houston A-fib Education Event

Tags: Events by Mellanie
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I’m an information junkie. I admit it. It’s my weakness. That’s why I LOVE following health writers on Twitter to get the latest health news instantly. In TweetDeck, my current Twitter tool of choice, I’ve set up a Group column just for Health Media tweets so that all the latest health news streams into one place. I love it.

If you’re like me, and want to follow the latest health news, check out our list of whom StopAfib follows on Twitter. I’ve just added a new section for health and medical journalists and media. You’ll find folks like @RitaRubin and @LisaCollierCool, whom I retweet a lot. You’ll also find lots of atrial fibrillation and heart health resources to follow as well.

See: Health & Media Journalists on Twitter

Please tweet me with whom you follow on Twitter with interesting health and medical information.

Just a note — if you tweet about atrial fibrillation, please also use the #afib hash tag.

Tags: Resources by Mellanie
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In Part 2 of StopAfib.org’s video interview with Dr. Michael Argenziano, of NY-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center, he discusses a trial that they are participating in that involves implanting a heart rhythm monitor after an atrial fibrillation procedure to see what a patient’s rhythm looks like five, ten, and even twenty years later.

Video Interview with Dr. Michael Argenziano About Atrial Fibrillation Surgery

By the way, Dr. Argenziano is a colleague of Dr. Oz (Oprah and YOU books).

Tags: Audio/Video, Surgery, Treatment by Mellanie
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In Part 1 of StopAfib.org’s video interview with Dr. Michael Argenziano, he discusses the atrial fibrillation surgery done at NY-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center.

He covers the kind of surgery that he prefers for those with recent-onset paroxysmal atrial fibrillation as well as for those with one or more failed catheter ablations, for whom he favors a bi-atrial modified maze with lesions in the left and right atria.

He also talks about considerations for those with poor ventricular function or an enlarged left atrium, as well as a ganglionectomy for those whose atrial fibrillation arises in the abnormal nerve connections on the surface of the heart.

An interesting bit of trivia about Dr. Argenziano is that you may recognize the names of some of his heart surgeon colleagues, including Dr. Mehmet Oz, of Oprah fame and the YOU book series, and Dr. Craig Smith, who is well-known for doing Bill Clinton’s open-heart surgery. This team of heart surgeons was profiled in the fascinating book, The Surgeons.

Video Interview with Dr. Michael Argenziano About Atrial Fibrillation Surgery

Tags: Audio/Video, Catheter ablation, Surgery, Treatment by Mellanie
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StopAfib.org recently spoke with Dr. Anne Cahill, a cardiothoracic surgeon, about arrhythmias and supplements, including Omega-3 fatty acids. Watch the interview at:

Video Interview with Dr. Anne Cahill

Tags: Audio/Video, Prevention by Mellanie
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