Distended stomach & abdomen after ablation

[chrisfellrunner]

Bit of a strange one this, so thought I'd ask if anyone else has had a similar experience and a diagnosis.

I had my 2nd catheter ablation 4 days ago under Gen Aanaesthetic; the ablation, plus cardioversion, seems to have gone well (allowing for it being very early days) and the groin wound is healing well.

However, I have a quite distended stomach and abdomen and have gained 6-8 pounds in weight in the following 3 days. There is some mild discomfort but nothing painful, but the area is clearly extended and swollen.

I don't think it's constipation as I'm still going to the loo.

Any ideas from my AF community and how best to manage? Any advice or opinion much appteciated.

[jeanjeannie50]

Not heard of that before after an ablation, you're not retaining fluid (urine) are you?

Jean

[10gingercats]

Could be fluid,heart or lungs or both. In which case it probably need a diuretic to shift it.via your GP.I am not a medic but I base my suggestion upon my own experience of fluid and distention.You could get back to your surgeon or his nurse and ask what might be the cause of the distention?

[mjames1]

You should report this right away to your doctor. They may want to run some tests like ultrasound to check for fluid and treat if necessary.

Jim

[chrisfellrunner]

There might be some fluid retention although I am still peeing freely too. Dr's appointment at 9am tomorrow so hopefully they'll have a prod & poke around. The Arrhythmia clinic seem to think it's a side effect of the GA.

Thanks as ever for your considered replies and opinions👍

[BobD Volunteer]

This is not someething we have come across before and not mentioned in our fact sheet on recovery. I suggest tat yu contact teh arrhythmia nurse where you had the ablation and speak to her.

Link below.

healthunlocked.com/redirect...

[chrisfellrunner in reply to BobD]

Thanks Bob, I've spoken to the team where the ablation took place already already; it is being considered as a side effect of the GA / procedure but is being looked at by a GP tomorrow morning.

I'll post the eventual outcome.

[BobD Volunteer in reply to chrisfellrunner]

We are all different obviously but in one five year period I had over 20 hours GA (don't ask) and never had anything like that.

[chrisfellrunner in reply to BobD]

For your interest, see my latest comments at bottom of thread Bob.

[Singwell in reply to chrisfellrunner]

Be good to know and let's hope its simple. Post my first ablation they evidently upset one of my phrenic nerves because I couldn't lower my diaphragm properly (very noticeable if you're a professional voice user) but it did sort itself put after a week. Perhaps you've reacted similarly I'm that department due to the procedure. Diaphragm, heart and stomach all so close to each other. Best to get checked.

[Hidden]

That’s a bit of a poser Chris, certainly not something I have heard before in connection with recovering from an ablation, hopefully you will get some helpful answers tomorrow. It’s a very unlikely to be an issue but it might be worth asking your GP if you should have a blood test to check your kidney function. If you are taking an anticoagulant, the chances are this has been done recently. Hope things improve for you soon…….

Errrrr, you haven’t done any fell running I hope 🤞😉😂

[chrisfellrunner in reply to Hidden]

Definitely not FlapJack, not for quite a while!

Yes I am on Rivaroxaban and did indeed have a kidney funsction test recently, but I guess there's a chance I might be heading for another. I suspect this is more likely linked to GA than ablation but who knows.

[Jalia]

I think I have heard of temporary weight gain following ablation. I had a similar weight gain in 3 days following my dccv in June despite having barely eaten. GP increased my diuretic and all back to normal within 7 days. This has never happened before despite having 23 previous dccvs .

Do speak to your GP

[secondtry]

Sorry not heard of that before. Sounds to me like an infection. Don't let the medics fob you off and don't hesitate to go private (if funds allow) for an early second opinion.

[Ppiman]

Of course this can only be a guesswork, but I'd say this is unlikely to be anything directly to do with the ablation procedure itself but some kind of reaction to or result of the anaesthetic. The excess weight will be some kind of fluid retention caused by abdominal slowness (a kind of constipation) or similar. Anything like this will clear soon as the kidneys, bowels and liver resume full normal function once the anaesthetic clears from the system.

It's worth asking your arrhythmia nurse or GP about. For it to be related to the ablation, then it can only be that the heart output has been temporarily lowered and some kind of oedema has resulted from this, again, something that will clear as you resume normal activity.

Steve

[Chrissy7]

Hi Chris I live in Canada and had ablation six weeks ago… I had to had a distended stomach and swollen Abdomen for a week or 2 after the ablation…

I think it could have something to do with where they put the catheters through.

I also had some large

Edemas in both sides since they went in through both of my groins and a lot of swelling and soreness there as well as in my stomach region.

This should dissipate over a couple weeks I think ..,

They gave me some tablets for indigestion, and apparently gas is very common after the procedure…although I didn’t feel gassy or have to use the indigestion tablets.

Best of luck to you.

[GordonS]

Hi Chris, I had complications on my ablation and had a bleed into the pericardium. Drain in chest for a couple of days. When that was removed quite forcefully I might add my whole digestive system seemed to shut down and I had severe bloating and blockage. Possible damage to the Vagus nerve.

[chrisfellrunner]

Thanks to everybody for your input & comments. I actually found a AF heart specialist who documents similar symptoms to mine as a possible side effect of ablation (see link at bottom). I don't know if my symptoms were related to the ablation or GA; it seems to be a quite an unusual adverse reaction but one that can occur. My symptoms have lessened somewhat over the last 24hrs so we are on a watch & monitor situation, and it's currently being treated by my GP as a combination of air / fluid. All my vital signs are normal so we don't think there is anything wrong with any major organ, or any infection. As a precaution I'm being sent for an Ultra-sound scan.

Thank you again for all your time & consideration.

Every day (well.....every ablation) is a school day.

dorsetheartdoctor.co.uk/afa...

[Hidden in reply to chrisfellrunner]

Bloomin ‘eck, maybe the factsheets should be amended! What do you think BobD ? 😉

[Lilypocket]

Hi

I had my first RF ablation last year which included the pulmonary vein isolation and Box isolation. I had what you described for quite a few weeks . I think it is probably to do with the EP irritating the vagus nerve . I had a bit of liquid around the heart but of not much consequence but was completely bloated and lost my appetite. I lost a bit more than a stone in 7 weeks. I even went to see a gastoentorologist. In the end nothing was found and I got back to normal after 2 and a 1/2 months. If it it continues have a chat to your EP or cardiologist just to get it checked as it isn't the norm but not unheard of. Take care

[chrisfellrunner in reply to Lilypocket]

Great advice, thank you.