I try to post a photo every month of my scars from the mini-maze. These were taken a few days ago, 14 weeks after my procedure at the NewHeart Watanabe Hospital, Tokyo (and the cost was not an Aston Martin...and more like a second-hand 201w Mondeo).For those who are interested in joining the online discussion from Tokyo, with Dr Wolf (the originator of the mini-maze) and Dr Ohtsuka (his student).It will take place on the 27th March at 14:30 UK time.
Thank you Michele. Feeling great too. NSR every day all day, but some slight breathlessness which is getting better the more I do. I was taking it too easy and I think that it needs to exercise the lungs more. Good luck.
it‘a amazing isn’t it that such surgery can be done from 3 punctures on either side. I was pleasantly surprised at how little the wounds were 😍. happy healing!
You're a kind man Steve. It is true that I lost a few Kgs whilst in Japan. The food is not very fat and well balanced. I hope that all is well with you and I follow your bird watching.
Yes, thank you, Saul. Oh to be young again, though! I last week learned how mind-bendingly painful a colonoscopy can be but also that internal haemorrhoids can also be the source of a great deal of pain, even hip and backache, having blamed IBS and diverticulosis over the years.
Wow. So, maybe an answer will be found now and you will be sorted? We are on a preservation trajectory, fighting to maintain what we managed to salvage !
Well put. When I was a young man, I used to look at older folks in some envy at the relaxed lives I thought they were leading. Mind you that was in the days of pipe smoking and that did lend a man a particularly relaxed air!
Still after years and years of acid stomach and bad turns I got my colonosposy no pain and the mouth to stomach and then the scan. It showed small balls and they hesitated. Then I learnt that my grandfather had his gall bladder out. Wheeled into theatre surgeon asked if I had used GAVESTIN. Mr ...... you should come to my home and see the many concotions in my chemist cupboard!
The surgery went well and he crept in the following day. Gall Bladder out what was left with it and I had to pick off bits from other organs. You have 4 extra portholes.
Never looked back.
Try 160mg Colofac for constipation. It relaxes everything!
Wow Saulger, you are healing nicely. Brilliant. And am so delighted you are doing so well. Thanks for the link I will be listening with great interest.
That island sounds fab.....there was a prog recently on longlevity visiting places around the world looking at the communities. I didn't watch it all but was fascinating. None of the places were cold - unlike where I am as we have over 20cms of snow & still it snows. Pretty as picture. Peak District skiing anyone? 🤣😄
Good news, but just what happens (God forbid) if anything needs checking or seeing to that might have [say] gone wrong, as you cannot exactly pop around and get whatever problem sorted out ?
From what I read, any issues (which are rare statistically) are not to do with the heart but complications such as inadvertent damage to the phrenic nerve, pleural effusion (collection of fluids around the heart), or a stroke - all God forbid and to be dealt with by other disciplines !!!
I cut and pasted from the release paper that I signed before the procedure:
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In the 4 year follow-up period, only 0.26 stroke-events/100 patient-years occurred despite the fact that the patients quit blood thinners immediately after WOP. This outcome is the best record ever in the world when compared with other methods including simple anticoagulation and transcutaneous implant of the LAA plug such as Watchman device.
Immediately (or 4 weeks for some) after surgery you can get out of blood thinners unless you have suffered extremely poor heart function, hematological disorders or other extra reasons. Antiplatelet drugs, routinely used after Watchman implant, are not required.
Starting in 2008, as of Nov. 2022, Dr. Ohtsuka has experienced more than 2,000 cases of WOP, the largest case-volume of this kind in the world. His unmatched experience has made the procedural risk, mortality/morbidity extremely rare, but not zero. The possible major complications associated with the WOP would be:
Thank you for that. I was wondering what would be the situation would be if [any] of us came back from abroad and whilst I suppose this could apply to any operation, who would be able or want to pick up the pieces if something takes a turn for the worst? Would the medical profession in Greece or the UK be prepared to intervene knowing that we live in a suing world?
I believe that if any of the above take place during/immediately after the procedure, you will be kept in the hospital. I've read of situations where patients needed a hospital follow-up due to inflammation or pleural effusion and had no problem getting it treated in their state after returning home from Houston:
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"Did anyone get a bilateral pleural effusion after surgery?
Yes I did. Received steroids & diuretics & used spirometer. By 2 months post WMM lungs back to normal. "
I was originally going to have surgery in Houston then return to Scotland after a month. My local NHS confirmed that they would provide the aftercare. As it happens I had my surgery here in the UK which was easier but still done outside NHS Scotland who confirmed again they would provide any after care. I didn’t have complications but I have still maintained by consultations with my EP who will likely discharge me too this summer.
Yes it is. Mr Hunter based at Norther General Sheffield did mine and other people on this forum. I live in Scotland so paid privately to see him in London but if you are England your GP or EP can refer you. His patients on here are from all over England - Cornwall, Isle of Man, Leicester to name a few.
There are other surgeons who practice, however when deciding for me personally it was about track record which is why I chose Mr Hunter
MummyLuv had it privately in London and I had it privately in Japan (at half the cost... in cluding travel, food, hospital, and five weeks stay in Japan). How they can do it in Japan so cheaply is a mystery, as is their fascination with vending machines.
amazing how quickly things heal and glad everything went well. I'll do some reading on this, do you know how different this is to something I've read called the hybrid mini maze or are they the same? We're hoping to head to the Greek Islands in September, I hope your loving it there!
September is the best time in Greece. Prices are more reasonable and fewer people. You must avoid the islands that are overrun by youngsters on quadbikes. Have a lovely time and I also plan to walk around some islands then.
The hybrid ablation, like the convergent procedure, is a two-stage treatment to ablate both the outside (thoracoscopic surgery) and the inside of the heart (catheter ablation). They may be done on the same day or staggered in time. I believe that the surgical part cannot reach the same areas that were ablated in mine, because they enter above the abdomen and I have punctures on both sides of the chest.
Can I ask those who have had the mini maze.......what swayed your decision/have you been afib free - how long?/ drug free afterwards- including DOACS/recovery rate?/ is it done on the NHS wait time?I will do more research on mini maze, many thanks
Hi there. I was five years in AFib and the quality of life was getting worse. I also fainted a few times when reverting back to NSR (the heart pauses for a few seconds). A single catheter ablations only has a 63% chance of success after five years.
"Arrhythmia-free survival following the last catheter ablation procedure was 87%, 81%, and 63% at 1, 2, and 5 years, respectively."
The mini maze that I had in Japan has a mid 90's % chance of success for paroxysmal AFib sufferers like myself. Fingers crossed !
I also didn't want the inside of my heart burned / frozen to get to the nerves outside, and a hole in the septum of the heart to get to the left atrium.. A mini maze fences off errant signals on the outside of the heart where they originate. A CA also require anti coagulation. I am 14 months in NSR and zero drugs. I am 77 and went up and down almost 1200 steps in 30 minutes. Please search the Internet to learn more
[Edit] In my haste to cut a d paste I gave incorrect data from the study above. The percentage success for a single CA was just 40% after one year, 37% after two, and 29% after five years. A median of two CAs were needed to get the results above.
The summary is that after five years and an average of two catheter ablations, 37% of patients were back in AFib. (37% of patients in the study were persistent AFib sufferers).
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