post ablation

[Lumps]

I am eleven days post ablation and woke up to three notifications on my Apple Watch is this normal?

[BobD Volunteer]

I will include a link to our fact sheet on recovery. Please relax and stop checking. If possible lock your gizmos away for a while as you have lots of healing yet to do

healthunlocked.com/redirect...

[Lumps in reply to BobD]

Will do thanks BobD

[Buzby62]

Assuming the notifications are for possible AF ?

Do you have the ECG function ? If you do and that says AF then maybe let your arrhythmia nurses know, that’s what I did when I had an episode at day 6 and they said I’d done the right thing. I emailed them the ECG trace. They are there for you as part of your recovery/blanking period and in my case have been brilliant.

[Lumps in reply to Buzby62]

Thank you I don’t have ECG function just my Apple Watch

[Buzby62 in reply to Lumps]

Apple Watch series 4 onwards have ECG function available but the SE does not.

support.apple.com/en-us/HT2...

I’ve added a link for you but the most important thing at the moment is to know if your heart is irregular and let the nurses in your EP team know. Can you feel if your pulse is regular or irregular? Maybe give them a call for advice anyway, that’s what they’re there for.

[Lumps in reply to Buzby62]

Thank you will do

[2learn in reply to Buzby62]

hi , just a personal comment, I've had 3 ablations and never been given a phone number or name to contact anyone, I've always had to go through my GP and start NHS process over. So you may have been lucky or me unlucky, who knows with NHS.

[Buzby62 in reply to 2learn]

It does seem to be hit and miss but I’m sure the support contact should be there. I think this is something people preparing for an ablation should know and make sure they have this support information beforehand.

[Buzby62 in reply to 2learn]

It is in BobD s preparing for information

Post ablation support

[Ppiman]

The Apple Watch or similar looks only for rhythm irregularities, not AF when checking over periods of time (the ECG function runs for only 30 seconds). These irregularities can be AF or ectopic beats, or from some other cause.

During the first four weeks or so following an ablation, as the burn scars heal, many such ectopic beats and the like can occur, even AF, and are generally ignored. The doctor "blanks" his or her concern for any heart irregularity during this so-called "blanking period". Of course, if you were to feel ill, their interest would return! Up to another three months or so - even much longer, I have read in some people - after the ablation, episodes of ectopic beats or even AF might recur but often eventually subside, yet these events might be an indicator of future eventual return of AF.

Steve

[CTblood]

Hi, I had my second ablation in April 22, I was in NSR for a week and then went back into afib, I contacted the cardiac nurses and my EP arranged my 4th cardioversion in June 22. I would contact your cardiac nurses for advice even though you’re still in the blanking period. Best wishes.

[Lumps in reply to CTblood]

Thank you I am contacting Wythenshaw to day

[MWIC]

Hi - Key is don’t panic - I’m nearly 6 weeks post ablation - 1st week after had no sign of anything but then 2 1/2 weeks of hellishness - I have a Kardia device and this was fantastic and allowed me to see what was happening as after the ablation I didn’t always feel it at all and had 2 episodes of 4 and 5 days where HR was consistently 160 - after those 2 1/2 weeks my HR has really settled so expect that you may well have some blips along the way and this can be simply due to inflammation caused by the procedure - as the inflammation dies down these blips can disappear and remember it can take some time for scar tissue to then form - wishing you the best of luck with it

[Thomas45]

I'd put your watch in a drawer. Read the fact sheet that BobD gave details of, and relax.

[Snowgirl65]

Yes, it's normal. For all three of my ablations, I was afib-free two weeks following the procedure, then would have episodes after that -- I imagine from the healing process beginning to start.

[Lumps in reply to Snowgirl65]

Thank you I do feel less worried now

[mjames1]

Do you know what type of notifications you got? Afib? High heart rate? Low heart rate? The Apple Watch and Kardia can be very helpful in monitoring your heart be it before or after an ablation. Knowledge gives you and your doctor more power over your health.

Jim