A-Fibrillation
- Thread starter Al
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Thank you for your thoughtful posts. Since my tricuspid valve appears to be the problem blood thinners are in my immediate future. I am avoiding mechanical intervention for now. More research is needed. As you are aware pvs's are usually not that big a deal.
I will keep you informed of any changes on this end. Take care and thanks!!
Al
Good luck!
As far as PVCs, not a big deal depending on frequency as in any aliment, how severe. As over time they can create wear on the heart muscle and lead to further damage. For me, when wearing the Holter Monitor for 24 or 48 hours we got into the 10's of thousands of PVCs ... and I guess enough misfiring some VTach and PACs showed up too.
I do agree, it can be successfully dealt with, but the key is to deal with it. My close family member not in great shape, ignored things too long (not entirely his fault but some of it his primary DR) Started with PVCs on an already compromised heart and now constant issues with VF, VT, ST. Just had the latest "tri" implant to control not only pacemaker but something with syncing both left and right chambers, in addition to built in defibrillator which saved his life once already. Part of this was the last ablation for VT was not as successful as it created heart block and why the new TRI Implant.
Heart Valves are definitely in more concerning to deal with and I am not making light of your condition at all, I know enough to know mechanical issues are hard and most cases harder to fix than the above electrical cases when addressed early on. Where mechanical the only option and hope is the drugs vs surgery.
Good luck, I mean it, I in case you didnt know passionate about the subject. I understand what/ the concerns you are going through and it's nothing compared to what I have. I know of people with heart valve issues too.
Not so. If the problem is valve-related and the valve is fixed or replaced, you’re likely good without meds. Alternatively, a maze or mini-maze procedure can do the same.
Exactly right. I just had a cryptic ablation and it went flawlessly. EKGs came back flawless. For the time being I’ll be on Eliquis, but doctor is optimistic that by September I will be off that.
I am having second thoughts about mechanical intervention. The wild card is getting a great doc. We go to a major medical center Penn State/Hershey. But I have seen a couple shortcomings here. I will be consulting with my doc (I am on great terms with him). We will see If he comes up with a good one. If not I will either go to Johns Hopkins or University of Penn.
I am looking at repairing the tricuspid valve and not replacing it.
25+ yrs as a Paramedic in a busy system and a bunch of ACLS recerts, some of it had to sink in
Latest: Probably on Eliquis for life.
Just saw a cardiologist about a severe tricuspid valve leak. He said it was "moderate" and I will do an annual EchoCardiogram.
Good news for me!!!
Just saw a cardiologist about a severe tricuspid valve leak. He said it was "moderate" and I will do an annual EchoCardiogram.
Good news for me!!!
All I will say is this…..
Eliquis SHOULD be monitored…, Just like WARFARIN.
I have thought that for a long time now. .
Some of these drugs remind me of the Vioxx fiasco. My best friend is a podiatrist with over 25 years of practice. He felt Vioxx, when it was used only on people carefully screened for all the risk factors, was a groundbreaking drug. But, docs went off-label and ignored risks, and people died. I’m sure the same has happened for these two drugs and more, sadly.
It does not require monitoring and works differently than warfarin. But thank you
What I am sharing below with you here… I would say to a family member of mine, a good friend of mine, and a friend of mine. I am saying this to you to be helpful to you and look out for you… Understand that.
I am talking in this thread to you like I would my own step father…. He had open heart surgery due to atrial fibrillation.. . I would tell my step father who I love very, very much the exact same things I state below.
Why ??
Because I don’t know you at all…
But I know this…. You matter…. You have family who love you very much . You have friends who love you.
I believe in treating people like they are my own… And in the this I am doing the same thing as I would for others.
This medication is NOT a bad medication. It’s not. I don’t believe that for an instant. It is a good option for a good number of people.
However… It does need monitoring… I don’t care what the ads say…
It needs to be monitored.
I’m not speaking from a lack of not knowing things…. In fact quite the opposite.
You see people like me and my coworkers in the hospital had numerous people with issues with THAT MEDICATION. That’s a FACT… With a good number of Those people being DISCONTINUED with taking that medication.
Your body can and does change without you knowing it. You have no idea what is happening. .
You know what your liver function is right this exact moment ??
I highly, highly doubt it.
You know what your clotting factors are right this exact moment ?
I highly, highly doubt it.
I’m not saying it needs to be done every day … Or every month… I would say at minimum every 6 months. . And for some people it should be every 3 months.
And yes… That’s what happened… That medication being D/Ced for a number of patients who had been taking it. AND … For other patients they had their physicians ordering routine lab draws to make sure it was not becoming a bad circumstance for those patients.
Al… I truly want you to be as good as you can be. You matter. . And you being ok matters. And yeah… I actually care about you being ok.
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Thank you. I will speak to my Dr.!!
Very good deal sir.
I just want you to be in the best condition as possible.
And I have a recommendation to VCU Medical in Richmond Va… A great cardiac surgeon there treated my step fathers brother Gary and he treated my mom too. Both my mom and Gary had atrial fibrillation too. . This physician is seriously a really good, good man too. I mean that one hundred percent… He actually called Gary and talked to him personally on the phone the same day when he got the referral… That is not a typical action by many doctors… My mom has his name address and office number if you want it. I can get that to you.
Seriously he was amazing with Gary…. Quite a story there. I’m leaving out a lot of the details here. . The shorter version of it is that Gary was in severe heart failure when he saw this physician. Got treated and Gary lost 35 pounds of fluid weight after the surgery in just 3 weeks after it. Had Gary not been treated has well as he was. . He would not be here today.
If you have not gotten a medical bracelet letting people know that you are on a blood thinner medication… Get one. It is very, very important to do that.
Interestingly when my step father’s physician discontinued his daily aspirin.. He was not right. My mom told me she could tell he was not himself in how his cognitive function. Which I noticed as well. My mom said she suspected he may have been having tiny mini strokes…. My step father went back on his daily aspirin and he was back to his normal self within a few days.
Very interesting how that in combination with his warfarin works so well for him. Everyone is an individual and what or how something works for one person may not for another.
The biggest thing is that you are doing well.
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It was the manufacturer that withheld information from the doctors. Greed costing lives...
First let me add, you have to listen to your doctor and if in doubt, get a second opinion. Dont play doctor on yourself or anyone else.
With that said, my whole life, not sure if I would go as far as say conspiracy but did everything (as a human with faults) I could do to stay off medications. Long family history on the male side of diabetes and heart disease in the worst degree.
Anyway, I swore (as a human with faults) to eat as healthy as I could and as best I could maintain proper weight as many deaths in my family of early death was a result of those.
Ive been pretty successful so far but the latest was my much posted heart experience, not major though a very large amount of PVC's, caught VERY early and limited 20% arterial plaque and an ablation. (I've also had multiple, stress tests, Echo's and one cardiac catheterization (which I encouraged to be done) showed minimal 20% blockage For reference a stress test can only detect 60 or 70% blockage) (im in good shape)
Directly related to the quotes above. I was given the option of the Drug Flecainide which the cardio electrophysiologist said I would be fine with because my heart is strong or an ablation. I couldn't make up my mind and asked what he would do, he wouldnt answer said my decision, I finally got him to say Flecianide he reasoned my heart is strong and he prescribes it to athletes, to his credit he said, I can try it and when I do the follow up in 3 months if I change my mind just let his staff know and they will schedule an ablation.
He offered ablation has risks, though low too.
To further this and when I knew this drug was a serious drug I was also scheduled for a one week (or there about) follow up after starting the drug, the follow up was for an EKG to make sure I was tolerating it. The other follow up was three months later.
here I was being prescribed a drug and having to go back for an EKG literally less than a week or two weeks later and another in 3 months.
I started the drug, one week (roughly) EKG was fine. PVCs completely gone, felt like I was missing a heart beat in my chest, no more fluttering feeling, no more waking up in the middle of the night, felt great. UNTIL I started looking up the side effects. Turns out this drug so dangerous is considered a last resort drug, FDA black box (or something) and not called for my condition of PVCs as the drug is more dangerous than the PVCs. On top of that, even taking it s short time like I did, increased my risk of dying from sudden cardiac (something) for like maybe the rest of my life. Geez... anyway, to back up the statements of those above, know what you are taking, get opinions, Im NOT saying play doctor I am saying be an advocate for your medical treatment.
SO at the three month follow up I told them do the ablation, was amazing experience, arrived at the hospital in the morning and roughly 7 or 8 hours later that day I walked out.
So my heart is great, ablation went prefect as previous posts show, to this day, retired now, all I take is a 5mg statin, a baby aspirin and a prostrate drug (no cancer after 3 biopsies so far, next one maybe next spring) LDL is routinely around 40 with the statin, it was always under 100 without. My doctors know I dont want drugs so when I questioned my regular cardiologist. He was adamant (in a gentle way) the statin is important as it has other good effects on the veins as I do have at this point classified as arterial disease even if its limited and statin completely safe. I seem to find the same in my research.
I think I have done well but Im not a hero, I learned from family members past mistakes. Be your own advocate, do what needs to be done to minimize the drugs with your doctors blessing only of course. I think as a nation we tend to take drugs to make up for the poor western diet and food we eat. Thankfully past family members taught me and I went Mediterranean a long time ago (for the vast majority of the time) Even with this family history, I kind of felt at times maybe some of my siblings thought I was a bit extreme and now they are like wow it paid off being proactive and an advocate.
https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/drugs/17006-antiarrhythmic-medications-flecainide
Drugs serve a purpose, I have a family member who would not be alive right now if not for a triplant implant and taking serious heart meds and they can still go out, golf, bowl ect. But the key is, know what you are taking, after all, we research what oil we put in our cars for goodness sakes *LOL* even though they have the same approvals but I am willing to bet less than 20% of the population researches what drugs they are taking nor are they asking their doctors questions about them,
Really sorry about another insane long post, just passionate about the subject and informing ones self on the seriousness of the meds you put in your body to ask and ask your doctor informed questions. Thats all I am saying, you do it for the oil you use, do it for your body. Look at what you are taking, inform yourself so you can have an informed discussion with your doctor and bring a pad and pen!
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Great advice after treating thousands of patients over the years.
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