Heart failure and Entresto anyone?

[PamJN]

I have had AFib for 11 years did well on Multaq for the last 7 and all of a sudden it stopped working. Spent 4 days in the hospital and they told me I now have heart failure - cardiologist has recommended a pace and ablate in January and offered me Entresto but I hate to add new meds to my already mix! Came home feeling fatigued and out of breath a lot so reconsidering. Need some help in deciding what I should do - anyone out there on a heart failure drug that helped without any terrible side effects? I am the US Thanks you have all been so helpful to me through the years I'm counting on you!

[Ppiman]

If I were you, I would follow the advice and take the tablets. I hate taking them, too, but with HF it's important to protect the heart and other organs and this seems to be the aim with treatment.

Steve

[Buffafly]

I understand that but I don’t think many here have experience to answer. I suggest you post on the British Heart Foundation forum.

[Larneybuds]

Good morning.....I was put on Enteresto . No side effects apart from having to be careful about blood pressure initially but no problems and I have been absolutely fine on it. Everyone is different with medication though and what suits one person might not suit another. I think it's often trial and error but it is very good for heart failure and I believe helps to increase EF in a lot of people.....am hoping to find that out from my scan results on Wednesday. If you are worried or having doubts, make sure you have a good chat with your GP or consultant or even your cardiac nurse if you've been allocated one. All the best x

[Dr-Gohan]

Hi Pam, I live in California. I was put on Entresto and my body had no problem with it.My Ejection Fraction kept get worse and after 20 month my Cardiologist referred me to an EP.

He recommended Pacer to avoid "Sudden Death Syndrome".

In Hospital for Pacer(ICDD).

implant went to recovery and as I awakened the Pacer went off. Turns out my pulse shot up to 180+ bpm.

Kept in hospital over night.

The staff admitting doc worked on my HR all through the night and a tech guy came in the following morning.

Tuned up the pacer and I was sent home with new meds and no more entresto.

One month later April 29, 2021, I had Cryoablation.

I have been in NSR ever since.

Everyone is different and like you this choice was not easy.

I simply watched several videos on youtube and decided to surrender.

I got sick an tired of being sick and tired.

I check my Blood Pressure daily. I totally changed my

Life style walk don't run, (bad knees) no watching news. Always awful and stressful.

No alcohol or caffeine.

More videos and am

Mostly plant based diet, but some small portions of lean grass fed beef (3 oz) serving once a week, fish and small amounts of daily. I've lost 30 lbs. and feel really good.

You will figure out what feels right. I am glad your here.

This forum has been super helpful. Here I discovered some recommend supplements. Check out the York Cardiologist, Sanjay Grupa, on youtube many many short videos and they cover the common questions we all have.

That's enough from me!

Again welcome,

All the best, Larry

P. S. Dr-Gohan is a nick name,

I am not a doctor.

[Poorlizzie]

Hi Pam

I was diagnosed with A fib( permanent) in October and heart failure last December. Initially on Enalapril along with a beta blocker and anticoagulant. No improvement in breathlessness and fatigue. Cardiologist put me on Entresto in May . Great improvement in symptoms .Unfortunately cannot cope with a higher dose due to low BP. Now on Dapagliflozin and Eplerenone as well. Seems to be a combination of drugs that you can tolerate produce the best results. A long slow journey but the drugs seem to be working. Hope this helps

[meemsdream]

Hi Pam,

My husband has been on Entresto for almost 2 years.. He is soooo much better. The down

side for us is the cost. His EF did not chance much But we are very thankful for this drug. He

is able to do things that he couldn't do before taking it.

Maria

[pauljusa]

Hi Pam, I'm also in the USA and came to have HF via overly aggressive afib treatment. I've been on entresto since 9/12/23. They start you on a low dose and gradually increase it until you're at the therapeutic level, which I've been at for about a month. There are temporary side effects for most people, nausea, diarrhea, coughing and you will get regular blood work while they mess with the dose. It will also lower your blood pressure so you'll need to check it regularly. It's also expensive, although I've been told that our fellow hearties in the UK get it for free, we don't. Having said all that, this is the most effective medication I've ever used, my energy level and physical performance improved dramatically a week after I started taking the lowest dose. This isn't just subjective hype, when I started on the medication I also started doing daily 6 minute walk tests. I'd done one at the Mayo Clinic prior to starting entresto and scored 87% of what a person my age was expected to score, now I'm at 110%. I'd say go for it! - Paul

[PamJN in reply to pauljusa]

Thanks for your positive reply. Did it also help your AFib?

[pauljusa]

Can't comment on entresto and afib. I was diagnosed with afib in 2001. I had an open heart MAZE procedure that fixed it for a while followed by lots of ablations during the next 15 years including the AV node (the heart's natural pacemaker) and a dual chamber pacemaker installation. So no afib since 2016. Unfortunately when I had a couple of valves replaced in 2017 the surgeon threw in another MAZE procedure based on my 'afib history' which stiffened my left atrium leading to heart failure.

Hope things turn out great for you 👍 - Paul