fribulation or flutter

[NLGA]

could I ask the difference amd how do you know what you have

Is one more dangerous than the other

thank you

[Jalia]

Basically Atrial Fibrillation is what is termed an irregularly irregular beat ( I liken it to morse code!) and is usually fast but not always. Atrial flutter is a fast even rhythm and can be seen on an ECG recording as saw tooth like waves.

Neither of them in themselves are dangerous but can lead to a greater risk of stroke if you are not properly anticoagulated. Plus of course it would not be wise to be in a sustained fast rhythm for a long period of time.

Both A /flutter & AFib can be treated with ablation with Flutter being easier to treat and a speedier procedure.

[NLGA in reply to Jalia]

thanks Jalia

So both are as dangerous as each other

[Jalia in reply to NLGA]

That is how I understand it . I hesitate to use the word dangerous but would say that neither of these conditions should be ignored.

[NLGA]

in my case dangerous as I have t seen a cardio doctor since August and no results of my heart monitor that I had in early September

[CDreamer in reply to NLGA]

By dangerous we don’t mean life threatening. Better to be treated earlier rather than later though. I found Atrial Flutter to make me feel worse as the HR is usually much higher.

I found this article probably the clearest explanation in non medical terminology

healthline.com/health/atria...

Have you chased your results? See you GP and ask them to chase the results. Keep ringing and be persistent. It’s easy to be forgotten when there are not enough doctors to go around. Getting appointments and treatment is hard with long waiting lists everywhere now, unfortunately.

[KMRobbo in reply to CDreamer]

As always there are inconsistencies to the norms described. In Afib I was asymptomatic even at 243bpm and was running when that occurred. Resting HR was "normally " around 165bpm in Afib.

In AFlutter I was at 140 bpm (rate controlled by diltiazem) but very breathless just walking to to kitchen for a brew !

[CDreamer in reply to KMRobbo]

Always inconsistencies - mine was complete opposite to you. AFib - up to 150 I could more or less function, AFl - straight up to 180+ and it floored me, literally sometimes, every time. Couldn’t cope with any of the drugs as they just made me feel worse ALL the time.

[Tommyboy21 in reply to NLGA]

Had a monitor September as well. No response from cardiology. Now just had another fitted yesterday as files got corrupted at ninewells side.

[Morristhecat in reply to NLGA]

If you are not anticoagulation, a fibroid & aflutter are dangerous. The lack of proper contraction of the heart can cause the blood to coagulation, forming a clot in the heart. It can travel to the lungs or brain, resulting in a pulmonary embolism or a brain infarct.Either condition, fib or flutter should be evaluated for rate & may need to be controlled by an antiarrhythmic.

[Ppiman]

Neither are more dangerous than the other, as it was explained to me. Atrial fibrillation (AF) generally is a problem with the top left chamber, and atrial flutter (AFl) with the top right. I was told that AF is easier to treat with dugs compared with AFl, but AFl is far easier to treat and more certainly curable by ablation.

AF can cause any heart rate, from normal to high, but it is always irregularly irregular, which can often be felt on the wrist. AFl causes a strange "fixed" or stepwise heart rate which is always a ratio of the rate in the atrium's rate of 300bpm, so in AFl the rate can be a half, third, quarte, fifth, etc., of this, i.e. 150, 100, 60, 50 bpm with no smooth transition between the rates.

With a high rate, both are, in my experience, equally debilitating and anxiety inducing!

Steve

[BlueINR]

You probably don't know what you have. Some people feel nothing with afib, while some are very much aware of it. I'm in the aware portion. You really must see a doctor for a proper diagnosis, that should include an EKG. I would not attempt to figure it out on my own, much less if it's afib or a-flutter.

[Speed]

Do you have a Kardia? After my Second ablation for flutter when I then had further arrhythmia, I was able to send a one lead Kardia trace to my EP who confirmed just from the Kardia trace that it was now AF instead of Flutter

[KMRobbo]

I was in AFlutter at an almost 140bpm for a full month whist another ablation was arranged. The brew did nothing either way!

[KMRobbo in reply to KMRobbo]

but I was still on Decaff Tea and Coffee at that time anyway!

[KMRobbo]

Decaff so missing the stimulant caffeine , but neither tea, coffee nor alcohol ever triggered my AFib, and the random AFIB attacks I had occurred during the times I avoided all three and other potential triggers as well. (Cheese and aspartame, & other artificial sweetners for example)Additionally the 140 bpm was rate controlled by 200mg of Diltiazem which is why it was 140bpm, not 150 or 200 or even 300. ( confused by flutter rates listed in different articles!).

The flutter was re-entrant so it was never going to stop until the ablation blocked the pathway

Incidentally the flutter was almost certainly caused by the flecainide I was taking for the AFib I had just recently had ablated. ( flec. gamekeeper turned poacher in this example).

Not medically trained just what I picked up during those exciting times!

[CDreamer]

interesting ly I found it was the de-caffeinated versions which triggered me as most use chemicals to remove the caffeine. I’m ok on quality products caffeine or not.

All that I have read cannot agree whether or not caffeine benefits or not. Many say caffeine reduces CVD however we do know that some are sensitive to caffeine - but it’s very individual so we can’t say it will affect all with AF.

[Tommyboy21]

Ninewells hospital

[JOY2THEWORLD49]

Hi

A Fib is more serious.

A flutter is merely your heart

objecting' I would call it. It could be stress, anxiety, overdoing even exercising, or if it's a regulator occurrence it is warning to see and talk to your doctor.

Folks who are depressed may get some. Flutter or palpations I would class the same.

cheers JOY. 73. (NZ)