pulse field ablation at Leicester

[Lenlec]

hi all. Anyone had a paf at Leicester ? Under professor ng

What was the outcome ?

[Ppiman]

I had my ablation there under Dr Ng's colleague, Dr Sandilands. I didn't think they did PF there, yet.

Steve

[Lenlec in reply to Ppiman]

Hi. Yes they do now apparently. I’m on the wait list to see the ep there. May take a few months I assume

[Ppiman in reply to Lenlec]

Yes - I’m about to go on the list. Dr Sandilands thinks it’s going to be necessary eventually.

That’s very good indeed to hear. Thank you!

Steve

[Lenlec in reply to Ppiman]

No probs. You seen the ep at Leicester already then ?

[Ppiman in reply to Lenlec]

I paid privately in the end as the wait was too long and my GP felt it was better to go sooner.

teve

[Lenlec in reply to Ppiman]

Ah ok. Thats a good option.

[Lenlec in reply to Ppiman]

Hi Steve. Was it proff Andre ng you saw private ?im gonna look into it

[Ppiman in reply to Lenlec]

No, it was his colleague, Dr Sandilands who did my AFl ablation in 2019. Dr Ng is hard to see privately, I have heard as he does far fewer clinics.

Steve

[Lenlec in reply to Ppiman]

Ok thanks Steve. Wonder how long I’ll wait for an appointment in the nhs system??

[Ppiman in reply to Lenlec]

I think you will likely wait a fair while as covid has caused a lot of extra heart cases it seems. It depends where you live, as ever, too. That said, this government is allowing NHS trusts to use the private system so you might get a quick appointment through that route.

One thing to keep in mind is that AF, and arrhythmias in general that happen in the upstairs part of the heart (i.e. the atrium - two sided) are generally not especially dangerous things with the real risk being only from AF as it can cause tiny clots to form that can travel where they shouldn't and cause a stroke (hence the need for a "Chads2" stroke score analysis and the likelihood of being given an anticoagulant like edoxaban).

Atrial issues can easily make you feel like you'll peg out any minute, but you certainly won't so some form of reassurance and relaxation help is always of benefit. Some people have worse symptoms such as dizziness and breathlessness and a few can even faint. I have a lot of anxiety with mine.

Steve

[Lenlec in reply to Ppiman]

Appreciate it Steve. Thank you

[Pumpkkin33 in reply to Ppiman]

What is paf

[Lenlec in reply to Pumpkkin33]

Pulse field ablation. It’s the newest / latest technique I believe for af ablation

[Pumpkkin33 in reply to Lenlec]

What do they do ?

[Ppiman in reply to Pumpkkin33]

PAF is "paroxysmal atrial fibrillation" (i.e. spasmodic as opposed to persistent). PFA is a new kind of ablation, pulsed field ablation, that is said to be safer and more likely to success.

Steve

[Pumpkkin33 in reply to Ppiman]

Yes I have paroxysmal af I wonder if thar would be better for me as I'm waiting for an ablation thanks

[Ppiman in reply to Pumpkkin33]

I think in many people AF starts as PAF then slowly proceeds to persistent AF that won't respond to treatment, or becomes a permanent occurrence. A friend, now the grand age of 90, has had permanent AF for a very long time and remains well.

I gather that when PAF becomes permanent, it can often be different and easier to deal with as the ventricles find a way to reject the atrial signals and beat at a more comfortable rate. That's the case with the elderly friend whose heart rate is around 85bpm and allows him hardly to know he has AF. If he exercises or, most notably, walks up even a small incline, then he gets a little breathless and needs to pause on and off but that’s all.

Steve