Successful .. ish ablation

[MisterMagoo]

Evening all. It's Sunday evening and I'm recovering from my ablation procedure at Nottingham City Hospital on Friday. I cannot fault the admin and nursing staff and the Consultant. From start to finish they were all friendly, caring and professional and best of all - I've been in NSR from as soon as I came out of theatre.

It was a combined PVI ablation for Afib and CTI ablation for Aflutter - that latter of which didn't quite go to plan. So whilst the PVI ablation for Afib was completely to the consultant's satisfaction, he couldn't access the large cardiac vein (coronary sinus) as required to map the left atrium as accurately as he would have liked. This meant that he wasn't so sure that the CTI ablation for Aflutter would be successful.

Apparently this was only the 3rd time in 16 years that he hasn't been able to access the coronary sinus from the groin. He tried to access it from my neck but my carotid vein has a wierd kink in it that foiled access too - the only time in 16 years!

The hardest part of the procedure was keeping up with the explanation of what was going on whilst high on opiates and diazapene. It was also a shame for the guy who was next in the queue as he had to wait an extra hour for his turn.

But I lived to tell the tale and, apart from tiredness and a little chest discomfort, I'll be back at my desk tomorrow pretending to work but not putting too much effort in.

So if anyone is waiting for an abaltion in Nottingham - please be assured that when it eventually comes around you are in excellent hands.

[BobD Volunteer]

Working tomorrow? You must be mad. Read our fact sheet on recovery and think again please.

healthunlocked.com/redirect...

[MisterMagoo in reply to BobD]

Needs must, I'm afraid. If I don't work, I don't get paid and neither does the mortgage, the utilities, the supermarket shop etc etc. If I can post on here, I can do my job - or at least enough of it to get by. The wonderful world of Tory Britain.

[waveylines in reply to MisterMagoo]

That is tough.... But would you be saying that if you had open heart surgery.. Honestly your poor heart.... It's been operated on. You cant see anything from the outside of your body but don't be fooled it's serious surgery.At the very least reduce your hours and ask to work from home. Going back so quick will be against medical advice..

[Frances123 in reply to MisterMagoo]

I can sympathise with the predicament of not working, bills not paid etc but agree with Bob you must be mad to work after only a couple of days. Writing a message on here is one thing, sitting at a desk doing more and for any length of time is asking for trouble. At least take a week off if nothing else. You can always ring mortgage, utilities etc and explain and defer payments for a week or two. Please be careful and just rest.

[mjames1]

Well, congratulations on at least what appears to be limited success.

"Working at your desk tomorrow"? 😱 The day after my ablation, I couldn't even walk to my desk I would give myself 2-4 weeks before going back to work and extra if needed.

Afib ablation may not be considered "surgery" but it's a big procedure. And remember, you only have one chance to heal right. Too much, too soon, can interfere with that healing an diminish your chances for a successful outcome.

Here's a good overview article with recommendations for post ablation recovery.

dorsetheartdoctor.co.uk/afa....

Be well. And rest!

Jim

[MisterMagoo in reply to mjames1]

Thanks for the link MJ. I'll be keeping an eye on things and if it gets too much, the sofa bed in my office will be getting some use

[mjames1 in reply to MisterMagoo]

So I'm week 8 now post ablation and was just starting to get back to normal, yet after a "late" night out (home by 8pm ) with a friend yesterday, I ended up sleeping 10 hours and have been dragging around since. Most docs don't always tell you this stuff! The doc in the article does.

Jim

[foxglove1 in reply to mjames1]

Please take care. I did not get dressed for a week after mine. had af every single day andd felt roughThat said after 2 weeks I felt much better and have been in sinus every since - 5 months. Take it slowly and all the best

[MisterMagoo in reply to foxglove1]

Thanks, Foxglove. I guess I've been lucky. I will be keeping an eye on things.

[meadfoot]

Pleased to hear you have had overall success and feeling ok post procedure.

Please please please rethink working tomorrow. I understand your worries re bills I really do but be careful you dont go back to work immediately and undo all the hard work and the arduous ablation you have been through and end up having to take more time off. That would be worse for you in the long run.

Best wishes for a good recovery and long term outcome, stay safe.

[Ossie7]

good morning Mr Magoo, who is your EP ? I am under Tim Robinson in Nottingham and I’m on the w/l for ablation no 3 . I’m also similar age to you , just a year younger .

Do you have contact with the arrhythmia nurses ? I had cardioversion back in October done by a lovely arrhythmia nurse called Silvio . He did a fab job , back in lovely sinus rhythm after only one shock which I was ‘shocked ‘ about ( pun intended !) as last cardioversion required 2 shocks before NSR . Good luck with your recovery .

Amanda

[MisterMagoo in reply to Ossie7]

Amanda, Tim Robinson did my ablation. Really impressed with his bedside manner, before during and after. My day to day contact is a nurse called Rick who I can call up anytime for advice.I guess you're unlucky to be waiting for ablation number 3. I really hope the next one sorts it out for you.

I understand that they have a team of 3 really experienced EPs at Nottingham and it's generally pot luck who you get at first but I got the impression than any follow ups would be done by Robinson in my case as he has the experience of my particular anatomy now.

[Fullofheart]

I would really urge you to reconsider your position on returning to work so soon...you have just had a pretty significant heart procedure. It would be a great shame to undo the efforts of everyone involved, yourself included. You will only need further time off down the line if the procedure needs redoing or if you become unwell.I had 3 ablations last year. I am 48, fit and active and absolutely needed the recommended time off after to recover. If not longer.

[Buffafly]

I’m assuming you work from home? I’m sure you wouldn’t be mad enough to try to drive/take a train/bus? I took the ‘back to normal in a few days’ on my discharge leaflet seriously, not one of my best decisions…..

[MisterMagoo]

Yes, Buffs - absolutely working from home and taking it really easy. Wouldn't dream of a commute beyond my attic office. And I'll be having a lunchtime nap.

[MikeThePike]

Many thanks for sharing your experience. Regarding neck access I'll never forget reading an experience on this forum of a member who had terrible neck pains after an ablation where access was through a neck vein. The poor guy sounded almost suicidal and it seems that his surgeon wasn't really interested. I felt really sorry for him and vowed that I would never allow any kind of access through my neck. Maybe that weird kink you describe could have a been a blessing in disguise!