Comments on: AV Node Ablation: Why You Shouldn’t Have It

By: charlie pillay

charlie pillay — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 19:51:38 +0000

I have tachycardia since 2007. I was put on concor 10mg. This medication helped for awhile. I had several bouts of tachy again. I then went to a Provincial Hospital and was given Tilazem 180 CR. I was then referred for cathether ablation after another tachy. I failed to keep this appointment because of all the reports I read about the side effects of this procedure. I wen t to the hospital again after another tachy and another doctor stopped the Tilazem 180 CR and put me on diltiazm tablets 90mg twice a day. During every visit to the hospital after a bout of tachy, I was given amediorone. I am very uncertain and reluctant to go for cathether ablation. What do I do?

By: Colleen

Colleen — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 14:56:45 +0000

I’m a 59 yr old woman who had been having heart arrythmias constantly for the past 5 years, with my first experience happening in my early 40′s. They were frequent, many times a day lasting for 15-20 minutes. They seemed to have increased after I had lymes disease. I was told that everyone experiences pvc’s, usually 100-1,000 per day. I was shooting 20,000 a day. Due to my family history, 4 brothers died before the age of 55 (only one of heart attack), mother died at 73 of heart attack, I was a good candidate for cardiac ablation. It was done on 9/30/11 at the Mayo Clinic. Typically they keep you under sedation but still awake as they found that once sleeping, patients quit throwing pvc’s. Not with my case so was able to be put under completely. Yeah! They found one node causing the problem but because it was too close to a main nerve/artery (the one that controls breathing), they burned 7 spots all around it. It has worked beautifully and I am so thankful! Due to the pvc’s I found I couldn’t get enough oxygen to my muscles to allow me to exercise without fatigue. As a result I put on weight, didn’t feel like socializing, quality of life lessened. In 2.5 months after the procedure, I’d lost 30 lbs, I exercise daily, feel great and no pvc’s to date. Also noticed that I no longer have hot flashes like I was having previously (many a day). So, from my standpoint – a huge success.

By: Mellanie

Mellanie — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 05:20:10 +0000

Joe,

Your doctor is right – the sleep apnea needs to be resolved in order for cardioversion to be successful.

Mellanie

By: Joe

Joe — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 20:53:41 +0000

New to Afib and sleep apnea but now I have both. I am 73 and am also taking atenolol/altace for BP and simvastatin for chlorestrol. I am also currently on warfarin and undergong a third sleep study on 1/19/12. The Cpap summary indicates that I may have central sleep apnea rather than OSA. I was scheduled for a conversion next week but the pulmonary doc is telling me that prior to that procedure the sleep apnea issue should be finalized and brought under control. If not, the conversion will not be successful. Taking this one step at a time. Any suggestions?

By: Mellanie

Mellanie — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 00:04:51 +0000

Terri,

I tend to agree with your two EPs that you are way too young for AV node ablation. It’s often a procedure of last resort, generally when folks are too frail for catheter ablation or surgery (often age 80+). With 6 ablations, obviously that is not working for you to solve the problem, so have you considered surgery (maze or mini maze)? You’ll find more about these procedures here:

1) Mini Maze Surgery: http://stopafib.org/mini-maze.cfm

2) Maze Surgery: http://stopafib.org/surgical-ablation.cfm

Mellanie

By: Terri

Terri — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 16:14:15 +0000

Good to hear the stories above. I am 55 years old. I had open heart surgery when I was 19 to correct an ASD. I got my first pacemaker at 22. At that time I had had an incident of tachycardia. I was given quinidine which we found I was allergic to. Went into cardiac arrest and my heart rate stayed around 30 after that. Hence the pacemaker. I am now on my 5th or 6th pacer – can’t remember which. I have had occasional problems with a-fib and flutter. In 2005, they got really bad, lasting for months at a time. I had my first ablation then. That lasted 3 years. Since 2008, I have had 5 more ablations. I’ve been cardio-verted many times. I am very symptomatic. I can feel this the second it starts and it just goes on and on.

My cardiologist who I have been seeing for over 30 years has been wanting me to get the AV node ablation done. Two different EP docs have said they don’t agree. I am too young (I love them!) to have this done. I switched to Pradaxa last year after taking Coumadin for a little over 15 years. I will always be on blood thinners and always have a pacemaker. I seem to be allergic or have extremely adverse reactions to so many meds. The ones I can tolerate don’t help. So my hesitation in doing this is that it takes away any hope of future technology.

Thanks for all of the opinions folks have posted.

By: Angela

Angela — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 03:20:06 +0000

When I was between the ages of 14-16 I was diagnosed with a heart murmur, SVT (heart rate was up to 340 beats per min.), and Mobitz 1 and had an ablation of my av node. Within a few weeks the palpatations started again minus the heart rate increases. I am now 29….still have the palpatations that sometimes make me so tired I can barely move. No EP has been able to help, beta blockers haven’t helped either. There is a family history of SVT and palpatations. My mother, her two sisters, grandmother, great grandmother, and 3 cousins. All of whom have been successfully treated with beta blockers with the exception of me and one cousin. We have both had the ablation. Mine 15 years ago and hers just a few months ago. Am I doomed with this for the rest of my life or are there alternatives?

By: Mellanie

Mellanie — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 16:26:32 +0000

Norman,

Congrats on your success.

Mellanie

By: NORMAN WELSH

NORMAN WELSH — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 23:13:51 +0000

i live in pa and had my second cather ablation done on sep 28 and it was sucessful; my medication has been reduced and will gey off the amiodorone on dec 13 and will get off pradaxa in feb; great young doctor who did the procedure at jefferson hospital in pittsburgh the key is exercise ; walking and light weights and keeping blood pressure under control; yours truly; norm

By: Mellanie

Mellanie — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 03:16:13 +0000

Patrick,

My apologies for not responding sooner. I’ve been on the road for the majority of the past 3 months and just didn’t get to all the blog posts while traveling.

You’ve had afib for a mighty long time, so I’m not sure that other procedures would be successful. But it couldn’t hurt to have a consultation with a surgeon to find out your chances of success. I don’t think that a mini maze would be effective with such long term afib, but it’s possible that an open-chest maze might be successful. I sure think if I were in your shoes I’d talk with a surgeon before having AV node ablation done. My concerns are like yours, the finality of the procedure and being pacemaker-dependent.

Mellanie