Thought I’d update on my previous posts and again, ask for any thoughts or advice from anyone with experiences to share.
Went for my cardiologist appointment yesterday, armed with all of my paperwork, including ECGs, Kardia readings & hospital discharge notes.
He was brilliant and listened to all my concerns & questions. He said my bradycardia was in sinus rhythm so although it was clearly making me feel unwell, it wasn’t AF. I explained about what happened with the digoxin and he’s said - which I was kind of expecting- that as my HR runs low anyway, then maybe I’m not the best candidate for trying to control my AF with meds.
He has put me on the list for a catheter ablation (in 3-4 months) and has taken me off bisoprolol. He has prescribed 2 x daily 50mg of flecainide to start on Tuesday, and an EGC after 7 days to check how the flecainide affects me.
I felt this was a lot to take in, but I was sort of relieved that he seemed to have a plan. As I was only diagnosed a year ago, at 45, I was a bit concerned that things seem to have gone downhill so quickly to the point where I’m now off work and needing surgery.
I’m hoping that the flecainide suits me and will help in the meantime, but mainly I’m looking forward to trying to pick myself up a bit again. It’s been a rough month.
Thank you all for your previous advice and replies, but it seems I really need advice again about this next step.
Does this seem like a normal pathway, or course of action to be taking? I do trust my cardiologist but it just seems to have escalated quickly. I will look at the ablation info from the links on this site to try and prepare myself.
This forum has kept me sane recently!😊
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All sounds good. A daily maintenance dose of Flecainide will help to keep you in sinus rhythm but normally, this is taken in conjunction with either a betablocker or calcium channel blocker. If you haven’t seen them already, I am sure you will find the following two AF Association factsheets on preparing for and recovering from an ablation helpful. They were written by patients, for patients therefore they include a lot of information not normally covered by hospitals or clinics.
Thank you. Yes, you’re right - procedure definitely sounds better!
I will definitely be reading the fact sheets, probably several times!
I have been told to only take flecainide - and nothing else. I’ve seen somewhere that it’s normally taken with other medication but that’s not what the cardiologist said. Hopefully it’ll still be okay.
I would argue that Flec is ‘sometimes’ taken with BB, but not ‘normally’....BB can lower heart rate, and sounds like yours is low enough at times.
I’ve been on the same exact path, and the approach sounds reasonable, except I took Flec (with no BB) as a possible alternative to ablation, to see if it would stop further episodes of Afib. It didn’t, but it made them much shorter. So then we ablated. Hanging In so far with just 30 mins of Afib in 3 months...good luck.
That’s great! Thank you for that. I start tomorrow so will see how things go. HR has already started to feel a bit jittery after stopping the bisoprolol so 🤞🏼.
Maybe, if it works well I might not need the ablation. I’m not usually great with medication in general though so I’ll see.
I do hope that flecainide works well for you. I honestly think that I would have a miserable existence without it. Pre-ablation I was prescribed 2 X 100 per day but now only use it as a p-i-p. I have it with me at all times as it gives me confidence knowing that it works so I am in control. It's an old, relatively inexpensive drug. Maximum intake is 300/day.
Thank you for replying. I’m due to start it tomorrow so I will hope for the best. It’s weird because I feel jittery already since stopping the bisoprolol, even though it was only a low dose.
I think I need to try and take my mind off things, but it’s hard when I’m still off work.
Looking forward to getting back to normal - or as close as!
sounds good, and quite similar to me.
Could not tolerate drugs to keep me in rhythm so EP suggested an ablation.
Had this almost 3 years ago and still in NSR. I do have the odd blip of fast heart rate or periods of palpations but that is still preferable to being in AF
Echo Flapjack,don't want to alarm you but please check about taking a betablockers ie bisoprolol alongside daily dose of flecanide. It is recommended ,as it can cause flutter to occur as well
Hi it sounds like you have a very good cardiologist and he is on the ball with things. Try not to worry that things are happening fast I know it can seam scary but getting it sorted is the main thing. I’m on 160mg of sotalol for my AF. And have also had a failed ablation but that’s because I’m a very complex CHD patient and my heart really dose not behave. I now have a duel lead pacemaker and two stents in my pulmonary artery, and going for an appointment at Newcastle freeman hospital at the end of this month to start the transplant Journey xxxx
Thank for replying. You certainly have put things in perspective. Yes, I feel happy with my consultant and I think I have to just trust him to know what’s best.
You sound like you’ve definitely had a lot to deal with. I wish you all the best with your journey. 😊
Yes, I agree, you certainly have a brillant cardiologist. He is taking the path of not having you live in AF. A beta blocker is for rate -- to keep the rate low, not to try and get you into sinus rhythm and stay there like Flecainide. Look up digoxin and note all it does, and you will not how wise your cardiologist was not to go the digoxin. Putting you on the list for an ablation while you are still paroxysmal is breath-taking. Some cardiologists are complacent to let you fall into persistent AF. If only I had had a cardiologist like yours whereas mine was an #@*#, and he was comfortable in keeping me persistent.
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