Visual migraines 8 months after ablation.

[ROO76]

Hi,I am a 47yr woman and had an ablation for a heavy burden of ectopics (30%) back in February. It was quite complicated apparently and took 4 hrs and took me quite a while to recover.

Anyway the week following the ablation I had frequent visual migraines which I was told were due to the transeptal puncture. Since this time if I do any strenuous exercise I get visual disturbances/migraines. I am keen to get back to exercise but obviously a bit worried about this. I am also concerned about possible increase risk of stroke.

Just wondering whether anyone has any experience of this or wise words! The consultant prior to signing me off a couple of months ago said something about the puncture not healing and possibly fixing it if it carries on. I really don't want to have anything else done if I can avoid it!

Thanks in advance

[BobD Volunteer]

I think you have answered your own question. We know that the aura are due to the transeptal puncture so if your EP says it hasn't healed then you may still have them. After my last ablation I had an echocardiogram next day to check the various pressures to make sure it had sealed properly. Have you had yours checked or is your EP just guessing?

[ROO76 in reply to BobD]

Thanks for your response. He was just guessing i think. He said that because they only happen if i do something strenuous then this is the likely cause. I just wondered if anyone else had experienced anything like this. I guess it about deciding whether to have something done about it i.e have the puncture fixed or hope that it stops at some point and was probably hoping people would say it goes away!!

[BobD Volunteer in reply to ROO76]

Then ask him to do an echocardiogram and check pressures so you actually know. Any other way is just guess work.

[ROO76 in reply to BobD]

Thanks, useful advice

[Elizka]

Hi there. You don't say if you had migraines prior to ablation? I have had them all my life, but they were managed. After my ablation I had an aura migraine every day for 45 days and now I get them 2x times a week or more 5 months post ablation. Only savior has been the migraine mediation. Have you considered taking something?

[ROO76]

Gosh that sounds horrible. Thanks for your response. Yes i have had migraines before and yes i take stuff but this is specific to me doing anything strenuous and different to what i have experienced before.

[opal11uk]

Yes, I did although they couldn't make up their mind whether they were visual migraines or TIA's but mine included 'white outs' which, apparently, are the same as black outs so the cardiologist was worried that I would start passing out and do harm to the rest of me!!! Consequently after several consultations it was deemed that my heart rate was going way too low and I was fitted with a Pacemaker and it all went away including the A/F but then I also took heart medication too, as I do now, however I have recently had problems, went into perm. A/F so drugs have been increased and I am told I am now in heart failure.

[Fullofheart]

I'm the same age as you and had 3 ablations last year. Had the auras after each one but only for a couple of days after then they disappeared.I had a full stroke assessment the first time it happened, on advice from EP. Probably being cautious. It was all fine.

[Qualipop]

I used to get a lot of visual migraines and was always told they are completely harmless. They went away after about 20 minutes and after several years, stopped completely. I learned to ignore them unless I was driving but never worried about them. When driving I always got a warning that they were starting so had time to pull off. I could often just sort of see through them. I hadn't had the treatment you've had , there was never any explanation why mine had started then just stopped.

[frazeej]

I have been told by my opthamologist thet "visual" migraines (also known as "optical migraines") are harmless; he even gave me a little pamphlet describing them.

JimF

[pusillanimous in reply to frazeej]

Yes ,my ophthalmologist apologised that he could not do anything about them. Mine rarely result in headache, just zigzags and squiggles in front of my eyes which go away if I close my eyes in a darkened room for about 15 minutes. I've had them for years and are totally unrelated to AF

[frazeej in reply to pusillanimous]

Same here, but, when I had the first one about 15 years ago, it scared the hell out of me-I thought it was "stroke city" for sure!!! JimF

[Prettywoman15]

I started the drug Amlodipine and had auras for 3 e days. The cardiologist replaced it with lisinopril and I had no more auras. I don’t like it either bc I cough all the time