Cardiology review

[Nomis21]

Hi just got a letter from a cardiology review.Hoping someone can help me understand it.

History, had pace n ablate just over two years ago and since developed heart failure, LVSD, AF.

Latest review states

Coarse atrial fibrilation 100% of the time, echo suggests I'm developing mild cardiomyopathy and coarse AF with and % RV pacing resulting in a broad left bundle branch block.

Currently get out of breath, irregular heart beats, no energy, fatigued, tired, weakness, dizzy, lightheaded, unable to exert myself or walk far at a steady pace, aches and pains and chest discomfort.

Not familiar with cardiomyopathy or LBBB wonder if there anyone who has these issues can share their experience?

Thanks

[Buffafly]

That’s a new one - ‘coarse AF’ and I did eventually find an explanation on YouTube which ended by saying it had no clinical significance. As far as I can tell it shows you have fewer spots firing off in the atria so you get a wobbly line between the R waves. ‘Fine AF’ has a straight line between the R waves. ‘Mild cardiomyopathy ‘ means your heart wall has thickened a bit due to muscle overuse. And the LBBB is slow conduction between the ventricles because the pacemaker is only attached to one and the other is playing catch-up. All in all meaning your heart isn’t pumping as well as it could with the results you describe. I’m sure someone with more scientific language will come along and improve on my reply but I hope that helps in the meantime.

[Ppiman]

I also have LBBB. It's a conduction issue, much like the ectopic beats and AF are, but the time lower down in the heart in ne of the pathways to the ventricles (in our case to the left ventricle). It's increasingly common over 60 years of age. It's said to be generally symptoms but in my case (there are others here, too) it causes odd feelings when it "kicks in", something like weakness and an increase in anxiety levels.

Many people as they age have some degree of heart enlargement or cardiomyopathy, I understand. How important this is, and its overall effect, seems to differ a very great deal.

How much of what you feel might be put down to anxiety, do you think? I can never disentangle this from the overall effects I feel.

Steve

[Cavalierrubie]

You might get more help and advice if you go to the BHF page as well. There seems to be many on there with your problems. Best wishes to you and hope the medics. can get you feeling much better, in time.

[DawnTX]

I am sorry that you received this information in a letter. It seems to me this deserves to have a sit down with your doctor so you can ask questions and find out what else can be done. I had a pace and a blate just a little over a year ago. I had heart failure that was getting worse. I had a 40% ejection rate now it is 70. My pace and a blade improved my heart failure because it took the strain off that my heart had been going through for a lengthy time, I have all four parts involved, My pacemaker, etc., is a bit complicated with a new procedure called HIS pace bundling. I also had the AV node done. nothing else was working or could work for me, which is why I ended up with this. My EP/Surgeon said my heart cannot take much more so it was a bit of an emergency and the procedure is something he developed for me because there was nothing to help me. I don’t know if that’s the case with you as far as it not being your ordinary issues. I have two leads. I also have a third in there if needed in the future. I have to say I have never felt so well. It took almost a year to be able to say that , I still have palpitations at times and that is to be expected. Usually it’s when do something I should not. I don’t always know. I shouldn’t until it happens like eating ice cream. Stress is my number one trigger.

All I can say is, I would want to sit down with my doctor immediately and have him talk to me in Laymans terms

if he has no future ideas, other than ablation, etc., I would find myself a new doctor one who thinks outside of the box like mine. They are coming up with new things every day. I don’t know how I became so blessed but my young doctor is amazing. He told me he wasn’t giving up. I wasn’t going anywhere. When my cardioversion failed I woke up to find him holding my hand telling me that. That’s the kind of doctor you need not one that says oh well this is what’s wrong with you and doesn’t suggest further. I know that your medical treatments, etc. are different but I also know that what I have was done over there. I met a woman ages ago on here and we realized we had the same thing done a month or two apart. We even have an app on our phone for this and they monitor us 24 seven. Now I am not saying that what I have for a pacemaker is what you need , but you definitely need more consideration than you got with the letter. There are amazing doctors and then they’re doctors. Just do the same things over and over again. It seems. Ablation cardioversion ablation cardioversion medicine. I have too much scar tissue have another ablation according to my EP, he would not even consider it , I had three ablations and I read people on here that have had a dozen I don’t understand. please reach out get answers because otherwise you are going to damage yourself more with stress not everything is the heart stress plays a big role.