Atrial fibrillation newly diagnosed help please

[carer999]

I had a phone call this morning from my GPs receptionist to say the doctor wanted to talk to me about my atrial fibrillation. I had been waiting nearly 2 weeks for the results of a 24 hour ECG and an Echocardigram so this was the first I knew of it.

What questions should I ask my GP during a phone consultation tomorrow to know what will happen/what I can expect in the future. Slightly in a daze at the moment and trying to take it in.

Is AF related to a heart murmer which I was told I had about 4 years ago. Thanks

[ETHEL103]

Hi welcome to the a fib gang. Plenty on here have great advice. It really depends how you are feeling. Everyone is different and if you didn't know you had it my guess is your aysymptomatic.lucky you. I can feel mine immediately it kicks of and I feel anxious and lethargic. Ask GP about anticoagulation. Very important as we are 5 times more lickly to have a stroke.

[Darkshades in reply to ETHEL103]

… can I ask what medication you are on so I can check if I’m on it already … only found out today by letter that I have this too

Thank you

[ETHEL103 in reply to Darkshades]

Sure thing. I'm on 120mg verapimil and 5mg Apixaban twice a day. I was put on Bisoprolol and Carvedilol but they are beta blockers and even tho I tried them for a few weeks I felt awful on them. Puffing like a 90 year on walking. Verapimil great but not stopping a fib or ectopic beats. Best wishes.

[Darkshades]

I’m following this as I had a shock letter today saying I have this - no one has told me!!! I had a heart operation Oct 2020, so I don’t know if the drugs I’m on are dealing with this … please let me know what your GP says as I can’t even get to speak to mine till the 16th

[beardy_chris]

Initially, look for the AF Association for information - heartrhythmalliance.org/afa.... They have a forum on Health Unlocked but there's more information on the website. Also look for Sanjay Gupta (York Cardiology) on YouTube.

AF is an electrical problem in the heart. You will need to take anticoagulants (incorrectly called blood thinners) which used to mean warfarin but today usually means more modern drugs (e.g. Apixaban, Edoxaban or Rivaroxaban). You will probably be put onto a beta-blocker such as Bisoprolol to help control your heart rate.

More importantly, you'll see a cardiologist and/or an electrophysiologist (EP) who will put together a plan of action. It's scary - but AF won't kill you so don't panic.

[OAPjust in reply to beardy_chris]

All well said beardy_chris. I was diagnosed with Atrial Flutter last October, pill-in-the-pocket Bisoporol, (never needed to take one), but also Rivaroxaban daily. Feeling ok, apart from aware of palpitations/eptopics, but just recently had weekly blood tests, as Platelet count keeps dropping, (currently 92 from 279) GP doesn't know why, he doesn't believe its the Rivaroxaban. Anyway he's going to ask a Haemotologist for advice. Thank you for your sensible comment.

[carer999 in reply to beardy_chris]

beardy_chris thanks of the information. Will I get my energy levels back and be able to lead a more normal life again or does the treatment only stop it getting worse.

I haven't felt well for over 3 years and my lack of energy has always been put down to other issues. When breathlessness was investigatated they did an asthma check, which it wasn't, and that was all that happened. Reading the effects of AF I can see I have had it for some time and it has been progressively affecting more each year and reducing my ability to lead a normal life.

[beardy_chris in reply to carer999]

From my own experience, I'd say you'll get 90% of your energy back. Maybe not perfect but pretty good.

[Foxey2]

I was newly diagnosed with AFib in March after a horribly episode of it that came out of the blue, I’ve since been in hospital for another cardioversion in May and I’m on 20mg rivaroxaban and 125mg bisoprolol, I’m just waiting for a date for an albaltion. It’s a bit of a shock when you first get diagnosed, especially if you’ve been fit and healthy before and some days I do feel a bit down about it as I can no longer do the things I could before but I realise it could be something a lot worse and hopefully it can be fixed with the ablation. Best wishes

[gladliz in reply to Foxey2]

Did you mean 1.25mg of Bisoprolol?😊

[Foxey2 in reply to gladliz]

Yes, missed the point out 😀😀

[S11m]

You are fortunate that they are "On your case":

I had depression, and the doctor concluded that I was "just depressed" and wrote out a prescription for anti-depressants.

I had bradycardia (slow pulse rate) and hypotension (low blood pressure) and Atrial Fibrillation - "fixed" with two pacemakers, three cardioversions and two catheter ablations.

I was able to diagnose the bradycardia and hypoxia (low blood oxygen, SPO2) with a pulse oximeter - so I got the right treatment and avoided the anti-depressants.

How do you feel?

If the 24-hour shows AF, the GP might refer you to a cardiologist.

If the 24-hour ECG missed and problems, you might consider getting an Apple iWatch or similar so that you can monitor yourself.

[carer999 in reply to S11m]

S11m Not sure how on the ball the one I spoke to this morning was.

The one who initiated all the tests has left. She arranged the echo cardigram and 24 hour ECG as the my blood test for NT-PRO BNP indicated I should be on a 6 week path for tests and seeing a cardiologist. She did arrange for the referral but I don't know how long the wait is as the surgery was unable to make the booking due to high demand. I am waiting for a date from the hospital.

When I asked the GP this morning could AF cause tirdness and breathlessness, he didn't think so. But that's not what I have read last night.

What other smart watches do the same as the Apple iWatch for heart monitoring which I assume is expensive as everything with Apple in the name usually is. There seems to be a lot on the market and I don't know which might be suitable.

[beardy_chris in reply to carer999]

An alternative to an Apple watch is something called a Kardia by AliveCor. It is a personal ECG that fits to your smartphone. There are models from about £100. See store.alivecor.co.uk/produc....

[Barnessy61]

I had AF in April, had to go to hospital for more tests and then had an angiogram and w stents put in my arteries, I was in for 9 days altogether but that's due to emergencies being dealt with first. I am on the mend and my cardio nurse tells me I am doing extremely well, I have to say I feel so my h better than before I had it done and this was all new to me too as my GP was treating me for stress for a year, but it was AF.