Wondering if anyone who has had a typical atrial flutter ablation has experienced flutter in the days/weeks following the ablation and how things eventually worked out?
I had a right-side ablation for typical atrial flutter a week ago. Last night I had a 2-3 minute episode of what looks to be flutter. One possibility is that even with the 98% success rate, I fall into the unlucky 2%. Another is that the flutter was atypical (from the left side) and therefore beyond the scope of a typical right-side flutter ablation. Another is that the heart is still irritated from the ablation, however from what I've read, there is no "blanking period" after an aflutter ablation, like there is with a ablation for atrial fibrillation where arrhythmia's for the first few months don't really count.
Jim
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mjames1
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My third ablation (July 2016) was the most successful, but before I could leave the hospital next day, flutter took hold and I had to stay in until it calmed the following day. About 4 weeks later it took off again and I had a cardioversion. My heart rate has never gone abnormally high since then. Still in AF now, but at a low rate between 60 to 90ish and I can live a normal life.
Wishing you a speedy recovery Jim and a happy, healthy new year.
I had ablation woke up in afib ….. went thru blanking period plus and still have same amount of afib and flutter. I am seeking a second opinion my appt is next week. So… my first ablation was a big fail.
I don't know why you think there is no recovery period for a flutted ablation. The mechanics of making scar tissue to block rogue signals are still the same and since scar takes time to form it is obvious that there can be a period of waiting. Be positive, continue your rest and continue with the life style changes.
Bob I had a flutter ablation in May and was given scant advice about recovery.I read the recovery after ablation and followed it having sat on the sofa for the first week then pottered around the house thereafter.I have read on here there is no blanking but I didn't want to take any chances.My mates husband had an afib ablation 2 Mondays ago and Thursday was shopping for Xmas with his wife.I did point him in the direction of this forum but he had his ablation where I had mine and there was no advice about taking things easy after the first couple of days so I'm with you on your query about no blanking as we go through the same trauma just no piercing of the septum .
I had Ablation for flutter end of Sept 2022 and in the initial weeks after I suffered all sorts of arrhythmia. I found rest and more rest helped me. I also tried to keep my anxiety under control as this impacted on how my heart behaved. I'm confused why you state there is no blanking period after ablation for flutter? It's been around 3 months since my ablation and I feel things are settling down. I had a holter fitted for 72hrs and this flagged up etopics but only around 1%. I have no sustained atrial or ventricular arrhythmia so at this point in time I am happy I had the procedure. Hang on in there it's early days and your heart has to heal. I wish you well going forward. x
You wrote"...I'm confused why you state there is no blanking period after ablation for flutter? "------------------------------
Sorry, it should have come off more as a question than a statement. That said, I haven't been able to find much on aflutter blanking and therefore putting it to the group to see what there actual experiences were. Waiting for my ep to respond.
I hope you get the reassurance you need from your EP. I was diagnosed with Atrial Flutter in June 2022 so it's still very new to me. I know there is no guarantee that my Ablation has sorted my heart out but at present I feel better than I did, for this I am grateful. All the best to you.
I think there is a blanking . For every type of trauma especially the heart. Think about even banging your finger, doesn’t it take a little while to feel better? I am still hurting from my cardio version a week ago the past Monday. I am having some trouble swallowing probably from the TEE I also had done. I do my follow up next week so we’ll find out more because my 3 shock cardioversion failed. I probably felt thumps after everything I’ve had done but one or two is not a big deal anyway. I don’t think the heart ever stays completely quiet but I love when it does. Feel better and give yourself a chance to heal.
The early weeks after ablation aren't always plain sailing. They certainly weren't for me and I had to be given a cardiac MRI in the end to check that all was well. A week or two after my ablation for AFl, I had a truly awful day that took me back to the cardiology unit. The look of on the faces of the technician who did the ECG worried me a great deal but the cardiologist reassured me it was no more that fast AF and a dose of bisoprolol did soon bring it under control.
Since then I have had several much milder AF episodes, and a great many ectopics sometimes accompanied by mild racing, so there is still something not right electrically despite the ablation. The MRI was given for continued mild chest discomfort on exertion but it confirmed all was well mechanically, confirming only wide QRS / LBBB previously shown from the echocardiogram but no more.
I was thinking that you might have had similar. i.e. an attack of AF. What made you think it was AFl since the ablation will surely have resolved this? I could never tell the difference except from the fixed stepwise heart rates the AFL caused me to have.
Captured event on Kardia. 150bpm. Beats regular. Looks like my previous fluttters as dx by my ep. Probably 2:1 conduction aflutter. But like you inferred, it can be a hard read, even for an ep, esp on a single lead. That said, my normal afib events look differently and last longer.
I was told that there was no blanking period at all with an AFl ablation, but that it can “uncover” other “hidden” arrhythmias. It’s looking like you might have “found” one, perhaps? Certainly, my ablation seems to have revealed other conduction issues.
I think it is very early days and there is definitely a 2 month blanking period and improvements beyond that. I had atrial flutter and had an ablation just over 2 years ago. I have had 3 short runs of tachycardia- twice when very stressed and once post Covid. I gave up caffeine and alcohol immediately and try and manage anxiety and stress as best I can. Remember to keep hydrated and practice calm breathing. Contact your arrhythmia nurses if you can and read through some of the posts on here which should help to bring some reassurance. I wish you all the very best - please feel free to ask any other questions.
Was the episode recorded by a device of some sort and was the HR excessively high, regular or irregular? If you have the KARDIA device, I believe it would report atrial flutter as tachycardia.
The re entry flutter or AVNRT is by far the most common type of flutter.As far as I know there is only one path that the re entry pulse takes at the AV Node and this is what is ablated. This is why Aflutter ablation is so successful.
Afib occurs in numerous places compared to Aflutter.
Hopefully I had the typical right sided flutter, which as you say, has a 90% plus success rate.t But as you know atypical flutter is on the left side and would not be helped by this procedure. The ablation was done empirically, meaning no flutter (left or right) was provoked during the procedure prior to ablating. I was told, however, that I did go into afib during while they were manipulating the catheters and had to be externally electro controverted. Not sure if that has any significance.
PPI man said: I was told that there was no blanking period at all with an AFl ablation, but that it can “uncover” other “hidden” arrhythmias. It’s looking like you might have “found” one, perhaps?
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Thanks again. Thought I'd post this to the group as it covers some of the other posts here.
The other arrhythmia's unmasked are mostly afib, which I do not believe occurred. As to being told no blanking period after AFI ablation, that was also my understanding, but I do not have a source. Do you?
Others here suggest there IS a blanking period with AFI ablation, but again, no source, just what appears to be there opinion. Love to hear their source if they have one.
So that's why I asked the question, the way I did. I was looking for people who had a typical aflutter ablation and had documented aflutter event within a few weeks of that ablation. Not sure I found anyone yet in that group here.
On the other hand, if I had an afib ablation, I'm sure I would have gotten many responses where someone had a flutter episode during the blanking period. And actually some here did share those experiences and I thank them for their support but it may be apples to oranges. A typical aflutter ablation is not a PVI. Afib is not aflutter. So we'll see what my ep says, but sometimes there is no simple answer.
Most of us here have had or experienced cuts or surgical stitches and seen the mechanics of it healing until scar tissue forms. The same happens to any types of ablation except that it takes a bit longer not being exposed to dry air.
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