I am scheduled for ablation in January. However, I chose an EP and hospital (Johns Hopkins in Baltimore) that is a 2 hour flight from where I live (Orlando, Fl). The EP indicated that I will most likely spend the night in the hospital and be released the following day. I scheduled my trip to stay in Baltimore for a week, just in case any post-op issues should occur. While I will be traveling light, I will have a carry-on luggage.
Two questions: 1st, I am considering leaving after a couple of days... your thoughts about travel? 2nd, should I be concerned about lifting the carry-on ( a few days after ablation) to stow it on my trip home, or should I have the bag shipped?
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MJZaw
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Here in UK one is discouraged from travelling alone after ablation, especially on public transport. You are also not supposed to lift anything heavy for a week. Read the fact sheet and make your own mind up..
I will not be traveling alone, my wife will be with me. Your advice about lifting seems prudent. I'll check with the EP. Thanks, Bob, for taking the time to respond.
I’m also scheduled to do an ablation this January and it will be my third one so I’m speaking based on experience. Honestly your not going to feel your best after the ablations and your going to need at least a week of recovery. Regarding the carry on I mean you can get people to lift it and store it for you there are a lot of kind people who would love to help out someone in need. But I wouldn’t rush into anything and risk bleeding because the first couple of days your at risk of bleeding where the catheters are inserted and it’s like a needle wound it’s much bigger.I think you made the right decision of doing the procedure and I think John hopkins hospital is worldly renowned in medicine and cardiology and research so if I were you I would not mess that up and follow every little instruction they provide you and key is not to rush into anything.
Thank you for your detailed reply and your insightful advice, which I will heed. I will do my best to not “mess this [Opportunity] up.” 😊
Just to add a bit more meat to the bone. The main, but not only area of concern is the entry point in the groin. Even after a couple of days, you are vulnerable to straining or worse, tearing the wound, which could be a serious problem bearing in mind you are hopefully taking an anticoagulant. If being accompanied is not an option, then you really should take full advantage of your full week and maybe treat it more like a short holiday. For the same reasons, any lifting must be avoided. Dragging a small wheelie case is probably OK but lifting into a high locker is not a good idea. Surely a flight attendant would assist here or better still, put your luggage in the hold and bribe a young stud to lift it onto a trolley. No doubt transferring to a taxi/car will not be a problem at the airport. The problem is that you are likely to feel well and OK and wonder what all the fuss is about. If you open up the groin wound you will soon find out. If you do everything you can to minimise the risks, it might be doable but it’s not what we would recommend. Whatever you decide, good luck and please let us know how you get on……oh, and keep hydrated on the plane!
I was in the hospital when they did an EP on me and I stayed there three weeks due to me being put into a study trial for a new medication for afib. (dofetelide). I remember that it wasn't bad at all in fact the Dr. told me they can do it without being put to sleep but I chose a twilight dose. They go in through the groin area and to avoid any problems, bleeding from entry site I would not lift anything for a few days. What they do is manipulate your heart rate with electric shock and they speed it up and slow it down to try and find the problem area, which in my case they couldn't find anything. It's really not bad at all much like getting a tooth pulled. If they find where the problem area is they will probably want to do an ablation. Good luck I'm sure it will go just fine. Remember GOD is guiding the Dr.s hands. I would be more afraid of flying there than the procedure.
Have to reply. I had 5 teeth extracted 2 weeks ago in the chair and believe me, my ablation was a walk in the park. Best wishes to MJZaw, all will be well.
I had an ablation for AFlutter in October. I had a 90 minute flight to take. After an overnight stay in hospital I was discharged at 7.30pm the following day as my procedure was late morning. Fortunately my wife was with me and we stayed in a hotel night 2 before flying home. As the groin incision is the cause for concern, I was initially mindful about the walk through the airport and up the steps onto the plane! I just took it slowly. Having someone to carry hand luggage onto the plane and lift into overhead was a huge bonus. Good luck.
Thank you for sharing your experience and your well-wishes. After reading the numerous responses to my initial post including yours, I will opt to stay the entire week to give me more than adequate time to heal.
P.S. To you and all the others who responded to my post: this is a great collaboration site and I so appreciate being involved with all of you, albeit virtually, who care enough to help and support each other.
Wondering if your EP has tried dofetilide for t e afib control. It apparently is not available in Europe, but has worked for me for 4 yrs after failure of several other drugs. Best of luck, etheral
I have not tried dofetilide. However, I have had medications changed several times, most recently to a combination of Sotalol and Diltiazem. I believe Sotalol is similar to dofetilide - I had to stay I the hospital for a few day, similar to what is required for dofetilide. Appreciate the info Etheral
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