Fleconaide Concerns

[karl1524]

Hi, I have been an AF sufferer for a number of years now, had an ablation 4 years ago and have thankfully been AF free since, although I have been left with bad days of ectopic beats and ocasional bouts of sinus tachacardia.

I have been prescribed with Fleconaide as a pill in the pocket, and although I have been cardioverted with this drug previously, I have still not taken it as the pill in the pocket due to concerns over the potential side effects of this powerful drug.

I am due to visit my brother in Oz soon for a 2 week holiday and would relish the opportunity to have a good holiday without being plagued with eptopics, that said could you please give me your views and experiences of this drug?

Thanks - Karl

[BobD Volunteer]

I think you need to try and take it. Many people find it works every well for them but a few may have side effects. Better to find out now than wait for you holiday and end up worse off if you are one of those.

Bob

[Rellim296]

My feeling is that you have to take quite a lot of flecainide before you notice anything untoward. I did have side effects from it but not a for a couple of years and I was taking 200mg per day all that time. My dose was 300mg a day for about 8 months.

I'm glad to have been able to give it up, but still have it with me as a pill in the pocket. I have no hesitation in taking it if AF persists for more than a couple of hours as it is so effective.

I'd really rather have the side effects (numb feet, reduced sense of taste in my case) than have a heart that misbehaves when it feels like doing so.

I don't know much about how flecainide controls ectopics. It seems to sort out AF for me.

[Hidden]

Hi Karl, I started taking flecainide six weeks ago and for me it is a god send. I take 50 mg morning and night and have been told I can increase it to 100mg if symptoms of AF return. I know it's early days and I may have to have an ablation in the future, but for now flecainide really works with no side effects so I am extremely happy after getting to the stage where I thought I'd never get my life back again.

It will be interesting to hear how others have fared on this drug but if I were you I would definitely give it a try as I noticed the improvement very quickly after starting taking it and could make all the difference to your holiday.

[jeanjeannie50]

Hi Karl - I use Flecainide as a pill in the pocket and for me it has been a wonder drug. Before taking it I would have periods with my heart racing constantly for months and it would make me feel quite disabled and I'd end up having a cardioversion to get it back to normal. I've also had two ablations.

Now if my heart starts playing up, after trying a few breathing techniques to see if I can calm it , I take a 50mg flecainide tablet and if my heart isn't back to normal within a few hours I'll take another. This has always put me back into normal sinus rhythm. The day after taking the tablets I'll feel a bit drained and my eyes sometimes feel a little blurred, but I'd rather have this than the previous long periods of tachycardia. This tablet has been my saviour and I love the way it has helped me return to a good level of fitness.

I think the more you let your heart race, the stronger those rogue pulses become. As others have said, I think it would be a good idea for you to just try your tablets.

Hope you have a lovely AF free holiday.

Jean

[pkc05]

Hi Karl, I used Flacainide as a pill in the pocket before going on it full time. As a pill in the pocket I was informed that it should work within the hour. Never did! I then had bisoprolol prescribed to go with it, a little better, but never seemed to bring an early end to the AF I just had to wait it out. Once I went on them full time it did keep me in NSR for 95% of the time but then again if I went in to AF I'd just have to wait it out until I went back to normal.

As for side affects, they where nothing to write home about, just a little sluggish most of the time. I'm glad to be of both drugs now but I still have them on standby, you never know!

Enjoy your holiday you'll have a great time.

BW Paul

[karl1524]

Thank you all for your comments, I will give it a try and let you know how I get on, I'm lucky to have been AF free for some time now and wanted to delay the start of meds as long as possible but the bad days of ectopic beats can reduce quality of life so I think time to give it a go on the 50mg dose, thank you all for the time you have taken to respond ☺

[StuartCJones]

I've been taking Flec for 5 years. It's worked well for me and has had no notable side affects (unlike Sotolol which I was on previously!).

[karl1524]

Thanks Stuart, going to give it a try on my next bad day

[Hidden]

I would say the chances are you would be fine so don't worry. I started on 100mg per day didn't work, went to 200mg per day and has been fine for 12 months without any side effects.

Enjoy your trip!

[pennytupence]

Hi,I've been on Flecainide since last August with no side affects☺

[karl1524]

Thanks for your reply Orchard and Penny, I feel a lot more comfortable trying this drug after the numerous positive comments from all on here - cheers