AF and revitalist.

[Annliz]

HI, My mom has been diagnosed with AF for 10 years now, 5 years ago she had a stroke which severely affected her mobility. This has led to her feet and lower legs becoming swollen and purple, I would like to get her a revitalist or similar device to try but would like to know if anyone here as tried one as they use electrical stimulation to help increase circulation. There is very little information about this product and AF. She takes warfarin and amityrptaline.

[BobD Volunteer]

You should discuss this with a medical practitioner as we here are not medics and can not advise really Sorry.

[AnticoagulateNow]

I have one of these Ann. Without taking anything away from Bob's sound advice I can tell you that the Revitalist uses TENS (Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) as a method of pain relief that can help some people with long-term painful conditions. We see them widely used in belts which can build abdominal muscles, and small pads are sometimes used on elbow, hip or knee joints in an attempt to provide pain relief. The electrical stimulation, which is applied in short waves, causes adjacent muscles to flex involuntarily so providing the 'exercise' without any actual physical input from the patient. On the Rivitalist it is the secondary effect of improving circulation as a consequence of that muscle activity which is sought. On to safety, providing you follow the straightforward guidance which will be included in the Users Manual, these are perfectly safe. Clearly, if your mother, instead of placing her feet on the machine, were to hold it across her chest to feel her heart jump, well that may be very unwise! There are clear instructions with the Revitalist and they should be followed of course.

Does TENS work? Yes is the short answer, it probably does. But it can be a very slow process involving long term use and, in some applications, lots of replacement batteries. Frankly there are a number of simple foot exercises, here for example - realsimple.com/health/fitne... - that will probably achieve better results more quickly and certainly more cheaply.

[Annliz in reply to AnticoagulateNow]

Thanks for the excellent answer. Of course Bob's correct and medical advice is always first port of call, unfortunately they often lag behind any new ideas and their advice is usually read the leaflet which is a little vague. I will try to get her to exercise as well to supplement the slow process. Thanks again