Waiting for ablation my story ...

[Bauldy]

Hi all

My problems started in 2008 when I had a heart attack I was 46, I had a stent fitted and was left with slight angina which all controlled with medication and life style change, all fine with the acassional trip to hospital for test and scans ... I was fit enough to go through surgery for osteoarthritis off the knees 2 partial knee replacements 5 years ago all the time continuing to work barring recovery time off. The care I've had through these problems have been great with advice and help readily available.

In Easter off this year I was woke up with pains in my chest and my heart undecided whether it wanted to beat fast slow stop start , I had a headache sweating off to a&e overnight stay was told I was in af, it calmed down and they let me home, l have since had my medication changed sotolal and ramipril seen the specialist and now waiting for ablation. My af happens most days and leaves me short off breath tired and generally unwell also pains in the chest and throat , I have took a week off work sick after a particular bad episode at the weekend which seen me visit a&e .

I'm in limbo at the moment,

I don't understand what's happening or what's going to happen?

How long do I wait for the ablation I'm under walsgrave hospital Coventry ?

Will my af get progressively worse?

Why do you not get follow up advice from the hospital whilst waiting for the ablation ?

[Rellim296]

This unsatisfactory situation might be clarified by contacting the secretary of whoever is in charge of your case at Walsgrave. Some ablations get done quite quickly, others have a long wait and it depends on who is doing it and where. Are you on warfarin?

Yes, AF gets progressively worse, but may deteriorate slowly. Do you revert to normal rhythm every day or do you actually have AF all the time?

A lot of us have dipped our hands in our pockets for a private appointment. You see an EP, pay around £200, ask all the questions you want and then slot back into the NHS.

Ablation sounds daunting but usually turns out not to be the big hurdle we all think it will be.

[Bauldy in reply to Rellim296]

Thanks for the reply

Wasn't offered warfarin, was told I was a canidate for ablation and accepted what they said.... I was told by cardiologist secretary my appointment was been processed..... I revert to normal rhythm all the time ..... Not having any control or being able to stop the af when a attack happens and the impact it is having on my everyday life is so annoying.

I need to chase things up and be a bit more assertive .

[Rellim296 in reply to Bauldy]

That's your way forward!

Good that you aren't on warfarin because it can slow things up for an ablation if you go out of range.

Yes, do a bit of chasing and get an idea of how long the waiting list is and when your turn is likely. Daily AF is no fun, but it's something if it clears up on its own.

[Bauldy]

You know I forgot to mention one important factor in all of this MY WIFE .....

she get the brunt of my frustration yet still stands by me X

[PeterWh]

You need to check with the hospital / EP's secretary what their stipulations are with regard to anticoagulation. Although Rellim296 says about good not on warfarin because of range issues equally they may not do the ablation if you are not. I was unstable on warfarin but they still went ahead and did ablation because of doing a TOE and a top up. In the last year or so quite a few will do on NOACs. There have been patients on here whose ablations have been cancelled because they haven't been on warfarin long enough.

[Rellim296 in reply to PeterWh]

Good point Peter. I think all hospitals have their own preferences, and yes, the times they are a-changing. I had no anticoagulation with my first ablation, was on warfarin for the second (and was delayed time and time again by being out of range) and on a NOAC for the third.

[Japaholic]

Although I am a huge supporter and advocate of the NHS, I was horrified by the waiting time to see a cardio. During the onset/worsening of my AF/Flutter I emigrated.

Here, in Japan, I paid 1000 pounds about for my ablation, was able to pick the date, was in hospital for a week. That thousand quid was all in.

I have state health insurance so had to pay only 10% or so.

I accept if I was in the UK I might still not have had an ablation. I would probably be in permanent AF on waiting list somewhere.

I agree with whats been said, pretty much, dont feel bad about putting pressure on whoever to get seen more quickly.

There is life after AF, ablations can work and quality of life can be greatly improved. Keep pushing buttons until someone listens to you. Make those calls, write letters, go see your MP......

Do whatever you need to do to boost your ratings and get seen quickly.