Does anyone here have AF & Atrial Flutter ?
Seems my day just got more complex ! My lovely EP just replied to my email, apparently current reading shows Atrial Flutter, so a different drug regime & Ablation . I just want it all to calm down , feels so debilitating !
It all started around 3am & HR still going 122 bpm but EP says that this time it’s Atrial Flutter , though it was an AF reading earlier .
Shoot me now .......
I had atrial flutter first 2 years ago and had an emergency cardioversion. A couple of months later it was back and then I started with Atrial Fibrillation as well. I have had ablations which have fixed both - hopefully it stays that way.
Yes I've had, and indeed still do have both from time to time.
I've had ablations for both which made a degree of difference and take Disopyramide regularly and Bisoprolol as necessary.
Just to complete the picture I had for the first time last week a prolonged bout of multiple atrial ectopics . Now I know how those who suffer badly with ectopics feel !
It could be worse but not much fun is it ?🙄
I hope you get some relief soon . What drug regime are you on ?
Well, I was diagnosed with AF in Sept 2018 during EP studies to treat SVT , felt brilliant fir 4 months after that . Prescribed Rivaroxaban and Flecainide as a PIP .... then AF got worse few months ago, so regular dose of Flecainide was added . Had a PET scan for heart few days ago .... Wonder if those drugs could have triggered this new Atrial Flutter, I have been exhausted since scan
Years ago, think 2012 I had AFIB and Flutter
Did Cardioversion. All came back immediately.
Then Ablation. Put on Flecanide and aspirin, although EP wanted stronger than aspirin but I kept it.
After a couple of months I found out that Flecanide could be a trigger and it triggered AFIB by me
Dropped it and I never had AFIB again till now
O, there was another med forgot what is was, think for BP and flutter
Dropped that too.
So happy. Drugs can cause a lot
I still think that IBUproven is bad and caused my initial AFIB but doctors laugh.
So do your homework and research a lot on side effects of drugs and put keywords in like Does XXX drug cause heartbeat, afib, flutter and see who answers and kind of replies
That makes perfect sense! I had though that I was doing very well with Flecainide for last 7 weeks , but something has triggered the Atrial Flutter, am wondering if it was the drugs that they gave me during PET scan 3 days ago ??!!
Thank you, that’s a helpful explanation
Yes, started as AF, eventually prescribed propafenone (a class 1c drug) alone. After a very nasty episode presenting as possible heart attack diltiazem was added. Then I had a few scary pauses, ablation recommended, report said for AF AND Flutter which I didn’t know I had! Now not allowed meds at home except minimum diltiazem ☹️
My goodness , it’s all gets even scarier !
Yes, I get both and at the moment according to my AF nurse I'm in flutter, but at a low rate this time.
Does 124bom count as low flutter do you think ? My EP asked me to let him khow the day went ....Kept hoping it would stabilise more but HR still 125 bpm
No that's not really low. I've had it at that rate and not felt good, also had it at 150 and that was dreadful. Mine at the moment is not consistent and can be anything between 62 and 110. I would have thought mine was AF, but nurse says flutter.
Today has ranged between 39- 145 .... SO tired
How are you this morning?
You haven't by any chance ever taken the drug Amiodarone for your AF have you? I ask because unbeknown to me whilst taking it, it had damaged my thyroid (made it under-active) because of this my exhaustion with PAF was overwhelming and I could barely walk from my kitchen to lounge. I was stuck like that for several months pending a cardioversion. To eventually be prescribed thyroid medication gave me back my life. My GP was telling me my thyroid level was ok and it wasn't until another consultant I saw wrote to my surgery saying I needed to be on thyroid medication that I got my life back.
Jean
Morning Jeanie! Thankfully back in sinus rhythm from 5 am , HR down to 64 BLISS 💓 Slept like a log until late ! It’s seems an ablation beckons & a phone consultation with Cardiologist tom . Feel SO tired 💤 & out of energy!
No, I have t ever had Amiodarone, but Yes, I do remember that you & I have discussed thyroid issues before .... My GP always says my levels are OK when tested , yet I have classic symptoms...Cannot shift weight despite exercise . I used to run , do aerobics , swim .... now everything is a HUGE effort
I’m Planning on writing up what I need to ask , it’ll probably be same questions that I had for my January & March face to face consultation ........🤞🤞
I had thousands of ectopics a day in 2018 and in that October, had an RF ablation, repeated only 2 weeks later. Last July, following very severe gastroenteritis, I developed atrial flutter, which was very debilitating. Following that, I had a cardioversion and cryoablation (not the regular RF ablation again, as I was on a clinical trial).
From then on, all was well until a few weeks ago, when the ectopics came back with a vengeance. I am now waiting for another RF ablation to sort the again.
As if all this wasn't enough, on Sunday night last week, I started with what was later described on admission as fast AF, with a heart rate of 180. I'm now on rivaroxaban and digoxin. I can't have either beta blockers or calcium channel blockers.
When I had flutter, my heart rate was around 150
Yep, mine was 155, but it’s come down to 125
Yes I have both. Developed Flutter after being given flecanide without a betsblocker as well.
To be honest I can't really tell the difference.I take meds and they work well for me ,sometimes things go a little enthusiastic and I get a long episode but I can manage ok.
I'm waiting to see my EP in October,put off from March and will discuss ablation just for the flutter. It mostly occurs in the right side of the atria I'm told,easier to get to and much more effective than ablation for AFib. All is not lost!! Xx
Hi Alessa69,
Yes it all seems daunting at first but don’t worry too much. it’s nothing that can’t be controlled or fixed with our modern meds or procedures. We are so lucky.
I was diagnosed with AF fifteen years ago. Controlled with flecainide and it’s sidekick verapamil.
Four Himalayen treks and thirteen years later A Flutter started. Had an ablation for the flutter, no drama, and it stopped immediately.
Now , controlling AF with meds, get the odd atrial ectopics if I over indulge in red 🍷 but who doesn’t 🥳
I’ve just had my 77th birthday and enjoying an active and satisfying life. So don’t let it get you down!!
I had AF for many years. At one point several years ago, I had a very high heart beat that would not end. However, the heart rate was pretty steady at 145 rather than jumping around as my a-fib normally does. I assumed it was my usual A-Fib, and I went into the hospital. My electrocardiologist diagnosed the condition as an atrial flutter, not my usual Atrial Fibrillations. He performed a simple type of ablation the next day, and I went home that night. I never had another Atrial Flutter.
About two years ago, I had an cryoablation for my a-fibs, and I have not had an a-fib since that time. That was a much more complicated procedure.
Interesting , thank you . Phone consult with my EP yesterday( he phoned before the appointed time , so I hadn’t done all my questions ! ) and an ablation beckons ...... It’s interesting , I think cause was such a combination of factors , but it was exhausting ! I’ve slept like a log for last 2 nights , just have no energy whatsoever !Just 6 weeks ago I was walking uphill &doing aerobics to raise money for #26challenge , now I feels as though I’m 102!
Thank you for this ectopic,that explains a lot! Looking forward to my appointment.
Stay well xx
What does Atrial Flutter feel like?
Atrial Flutter caused by Flecainide
Flutter vs AF
Atrial flutter/fib
According to EP JOHN MANDROLA, MD "AF-rhythm drugs (propafenone, flecainide for example) often make atrial flutter worse." 
