I have been offered an invasive option as we've exhausted most unsuccessful options of medications. I seem to have settled best on Quinedine now after several allergies to other meds. Unfortunately though, I had another defibrillator shock recently after nearly 2 years without any. As I still get almost daily AFs that can quickly go into VFs, my consultant suggested an op to remove the pacemaker lead from my defibrillator and implant a 2 lead pacemaker alongside my defibrillator. It was rather a shock to be offered this and have to decide on the spot. I decided to wait until I have another shock at some stage and then go for it but having read about the procedure I am concerned. I know fitting pacemaker is easier and that part doesnt worry me. What worries me is the risk factor as it appears quite an intensive operation to remove leads and repair any damage. Also will the pacemaker regulate my heart sufficiently to get me off the meds? Either way, will it eliminate all the AFs and VFs totally? And would the pacemaker be inserted on the opp collarbone to my defibrillator? I asked a lot of questions but not all until I thought it over later. Ive googled the procedure and it seems a complicated effort to remove a lead fron the heart. Should I be concerned about this op? Is there any alternative method to regulate my heart before considering this method? I forgot to ask some importabt questions on the spot and those I did ask got fairly vague replies, ie no guarantees and all ops carry a risk. Has anyone had this procedure done and how did it go? Any advice would be welcome thank you.
Any advice on Lead extraction op welc... - British Heart Fou...
Any advice on Lead extraction op welcome please
Dear You,
I am so sorry that I cannot answer your question as I have no experience of your diagnosis at all,
I have a pacemaker, that is as near as I get.
I just wanted you to know that I have read your post and am sending you all the best for your future.
Take care and please keep us informed.
Thank you for your reply and your support. Im not sure how common it is to have a lead removed but online it seems quite scary. Someone told me the op wont stop the AFs entirely so Im wondering whether its worth the risk!, I will let you know as things proceed although I did say Id rather wait until I have another shock at any time. It could be days months or years away yet!
Hi, I can't really answer your question as I don't know much about pacemakers, but my husband has an ICD which also paces him. It is unusual to have a device lead extracted, but not unheard of. Because the leads from any device embed themselves into the heart they usually leave any redundant leads in situ when any new leads are fitted, but obviously the surgeon wouldn't undertake the procedure of removing them unless they thought it was necessary and were confident it can be done safely. What I am confused about is why you're having a pacemaker & a defibrillator I've not heard of that before. As I said, my husband has an ICD & there is talk of inserting another lead, making it a dual chamber device, his ICD will then pace him from the top of the heart instead of pacing the ventricles which it's currently doing & which can damage the heart.
Could you ask your cardiologist or heart nurse, if you have one, as they'd be able to explain why they want to do this. Bear in mind they will always tell you the worse case scenario risks, but even minor procedures carry risks .
Good luck 🤞
Thank you for your reply, and to you all for responding. Thats interesting to know that your husband may have another lead inserted to make it dual chamber pacing. My defibrillator has an inbuilt pacemaker too but only one lead for pacing, the other 2 are for defibrillator shocks. To remove the pacer lead and replace with another 2 to dual pace my heart seems daft if the existing lead can remain and another added to do the job. Thats definitely something to question my consultant about! Thank you for enlightening me.
I don't have a heart nurse unfortunately, on discharge from hospital following my SCAs and ICD fitting that was it. Nothing more unless I collapsed in public before an icd shock and someone would usually call an ambulance to take me to A&E. Then Id see the cardiologist on duty and ask more questions each time. Theyve all advised differently and no one knows exactly where my electrical fault is to actually determine what my condition actually is.
Last Friday was my first face to face appt with my consultant in 8 years, although I had one telephone appt in 2020 but her time was clearly limited then and I couldn't ask all I wanted to since having my SCAs. She can advise my gp on meds to prescribe but my gp always says shes no cardiac expert, my cardiologist should be informing me.
At this appt my consultant said Im her most difficult patient to treat and as we've run out of options with meds and not ideal to leave things as they are, the surgery was the only option left and she wanted to know there and then if Id agree to it. To be put on the spot like that is worrying hence my saying wait first, but I'd like to ask more questions now and will ask my gp to forward a letter.
Another thing I questioned at my appt was about the battery change, which basically means the device is changed. I've had mine over 8 years now and at first they said I'd have it changed in 6 years, then 7 years, well before the estimated 10 year life span. Last year they said they leave them now for 10 years as they last at least that span,
I suggested they do the change if Im already under anaesthetic for the lead extraction and pacemaker op but she said no, it doesnt work like that! She then informed me now that I have another 9 years left before changing it! Thats a 17 year lifespan for my ICD, sounds odd to me. Im now concerned about it all, my consultant certainly hasn't inspired any confidence in me. I just worry the nhs state isn't coping with us and our health at the moment, are they leaving us to drop off the end of the waiting lists rather than prevent further problems!
Your cardiac care does seem rather odd!! I belong to a couple of support groups and it's not unusual to not see a cardiologist after your device is fitted & if your condition is stable. This is because you would be having at least annual device checks at the pacing clinic, if anything flags up on your ICD records a cardiologist will be called into your appt, at least that's what happens at my husband's appts. With regards to the medication, your cardiologist would normally write to your GP asking him/her to prescribe certain meds & your GP will usually do this & monitor you with blood tests etc. If your gp isn't confident about heart matters he/she should be contacting your cardiologist for advice or should be referring you for an appt
Battery length, unless your cardiologist has looked at your ICD records I'm not sure how he/she would know how much battery time you have left, this is usually a question for the pacing team. The lifespan of your battery would depend on how much your device is used, pacing, shocks etc. Certainly the batteries are more advanced these days so may last many years if the usage is low, I know of people who've had their ICD for 12+ years without needing a new battery. But when your battery starts depleting, this will show on you downloads & usually your device will sound an alarm, so please don't worry that your device will run out & leave you without any protection, that really won't happen. These devices are expensive bits of equipment, I don't think they would consider changing the battery unless it's absolutely necessary plus I assume there could be an additional risk factor if this is all done at the same time? Tbh, it sounds more like your cardiologist is the issue rather than the NHS, your cardiologist really does need to explain things more clearly.
As a matter of interest, why would you need 2 leads to deliver a shock? My husband only has the one lead & that has managed to shock him successfully.
As you've not been able to talk through these things at your appt, would you be able to email your cardiologist with all your questions? If not maybe the BHF nurses on this site may be able to help.
Finally, if you do Facebook, there is a FB called ICD support-uk, a very friendly, helpful group. There may be some member's there that have experience of your situation, there are definitely members in the group that have ICD's fitted due to previous cardiac arrest but the cause has not been determined.
Good luck, I hope you manage to find the answers you're looking for.
Thank you for sharing some v good information here, its really helpful. I do have annual checks at the ICD clinic and 3 monthly checks remotely. It used to be in person every 3 months for the first few years as I had regular ICD shocks. When I first came out of hospital after it all started I felt great, couldnt believe I'd had the cardiac arrests as I still felt fit and quickly returned to an active life. Then a few weeks later my gp was notified to put me onto bisoprolol and my life has gone totally drained of energy since plus the shocks started after 6 months on the meds and got fairly regular. It got worse on some meds so despite the allergies they weren't helping to prevent the AFs, VFs & VTs. Each time I passed out and ended up in hospital after a shock the meds were reviewed by different cardiologists so my gp has little to do with them overall apart from the allergic reactions she witnessed. She simply advised me to stop them and notified my consultant. The advice was usually to return to Bisoprolol immediately until the next hospital visit and trials on new meds.
I have a heart monitor at home so if I have a shock and manage to stay out of hospital the ICD technicians generally call me next morning to come in to check my device. Strangely, since an electro cardiologist saw me after a shock and recommended Quinedine I rarely have shocks now and on those occasions I don't pass out before the shock any more, which is still scary as Im fully conscious and feel the full impact of the shock! It knocks me back off my feet at times but I know if Ive pushed myself too much to rest plenty and avoid a shock. Not ending up collapsed in various public places any more saves folk from calling an ambulance! I just try to get home and rest but they usually call me into the clinic next day when they pick it up online.
Re the leads, I didnt know anything much about them and assumed I had one for the defibrillator and one for pacemaker until my consultant mentioned the 3 leads. So now I'm confused! My consultant really doesn't explain very much unless pushed to and is generally vague with her answers. I will email her via my gp and list the questions to ask. Last time I did that my gp and I received a letter eventually but not many questions were answered and apart from advice to go back on the bisoprolol that was causing many prolems, everything else was extremely vague. Its all very well writing down try various meds but without direct contact she has no idea how Im feeling on them or what else is going on. I will write in the first instance and if unhappy with the reply I'll request a call to discuss it. Im still not convinced the pacemaker will prevent the AFs but that will be one of my more detailed questions on the list. I did ask but it was 'no guarantees'. I wouldn't rule out a second opinion either.
Thanks for the fb link, I will try that one too. Im on the SCA survivors fb page already but we discuss more personal issues treatments and meds etc on here.
I think most of us find a lot of support on fb and here as so many feel rather lost after disvharge from hospital. The support does appear tp vary in other areas as Im hearing about cardiac nurses and rehab, none of which are offered here for SCAs.
Crikey, you certainly have a complicated case. I've done a quick Google & found that a 3 leads device is a biventricular pacemaker (I've only googled that so don't take my word for it) I believe this is also known as a CRT-d or CRT-p, the only difference between these is one also has a defib function, CRT-d, the other doesn't. Definitely loads of people in the ICD group who have this device.Bisoprolol is always a first line med for ayythmias as it slows down the heart rate, unfortunately as you know, it can slow you down so much that it's hard to function normally. I assume your ICD downloads were showing you'd been having arrythimias, hence the bisoprolol being introduced to try & stop/reduce these to avoid your ICD having to keep shocking you as this isn't great for your heart or your mental health. The bisoprolol doesn't work for everyone, it didn't work for my husband.
The cardiac nurses are heart failure specialist nurses, if you don't have HF then they wouldn't be of help to you, their expertise lies with the plumbing of the heart not the electrics. Electrophysiologists are the experts with the electrics of your heart & I would assume you would have an EP (Electrophysiologist) involved in your care. Cardiac rehab is usually only offered to those who've had a heart attack, it's a fitness & well being course that's helps rebuild your fitness/confidence after a HA & helps you to modify your life style post HA.
I know absolutely nothing about AF's other than I understand they're not usually life threatening but they can cause VF's & VT's, which is a whole new ball game. My husbands problems are VT's, I'm only just learning about these & how they're treated etc, despite having had an ICD since 2012 it's been pretty much redundant except for pacing him but this year his heart seems to have gone into manic mode. I'm not sure what has caused this to happen but his HF is now severe, either due his cancer treatment and/or having the virus we can't mention about a year later. But at the same time he also had an infection which they now think may have been sepsis as he was so poorly with it & took months to get over it.
Yes lots of support here & on FB but I definitely think you'll get some appropriate advice from the ICD group.
Good luck 🤞
Thank you again, I think we are all learning more from others on here and a lot of valuable information is no bad thing! Until I had my SCAs I didnt know the difference between a cardiac arrest and a heart attack or heart failure. I've learned so much since, mainly that its either plumbing or electrical, two separate areas but one can often lead to the other problem. Coming out of a coma and being asked what sort of defibrillator Id prefer wasnt on my agenda at any time but having the normal ICD incl pacemaker sounded practical at that time and I made good regular use of both in the first 2-3 years! On 5mg of Bisoprolol it was extremely hard to get out of bed, I was so drugged! Going out the house was a rare occurence then but Id collapse and end up in hospital with my heart struggling to reach anywhere around 40bpm so the pacenaker was much appreciated. Mostly though my heart just went sporadically into AF (upper chamber) then quickly into VF (lower chamber) and next thing Im passed out and a defibrillator shock bringing me back. No blockers seemed to work but on one hospital trip I finally got to see an electrocardiologist at last. He over ruled the duty cardiologist and suggested I try Quinidine and its been far more successful so far. If I could remember his name Id like advice from him again! At the start I felt a huge weight was lifted as I came off blockers and onto the new meds, although the daily upset tum side effects took a while to get used to I got my energy back at last. I did have 3 shocks in the first few months but I had sepsis then and it puts a strain on the heart. Once the sepsis was cleared I've only had 2 shocks and one prolonged near shock constant episode in the last 5 years which has been a huge improvement. My main issue, so I thought, was the constant fatigue I have now. Ive gradually slowed to an awful pace over the 5 years, and not sure if its my heart or the meds. Lockdown didnt help as I piled on so much weight in the first month alone and the lack of activity has made ne so unfit. It took months to get that way but its taking double to shift it and get fit again now. Im now being tested post 'the virus' for lung function and sleep apnea as that apparently can have quite an effect on the AFs. Extra weight doesnt help either but when you dont have the energy to move sufficiently its a vicious circle re exercise! Unfortunately though my monitor downloads show almost daily AFs and VFs They cant easily distinguish between the two via downloads alone and assume a lot of the VFs are more likely AFs so I need to be cured of those. An ECG showed a high rate of both though and is still showing milder daily episodes despite increasing my Quinidine. Just when I thought it was resolved the last shock prompted my consultant to call me in to discuss the option of surgery.
Fortunately my plumbing sides fine, subject to last weeks Echocardiogram but the pumping and valves appeared ok. Thats a whole different department I'm not so familiar with.
Your poor husbands heart has a lot to cope with. His cancer treatment can't be helping, and sepsis adds strain too but he is doing well considering! It sounds like youre both coping with such a lot but good for you for researching things and learning more about it all. That will be a great support for your husband. We certainly need a bit of insight to know the right questions to ask. All the best with getting his health sorted, and don't forget to look after yourself too while coping with it all. Hopefully you'll have better times to come and we are all here to support each other as well as sorting out our dilemas! Take care and best wishes.
Must be due to all the lead in fuel when we were younger. It is good that they can remove it. Interesting 
I think all these questions you’re asking us you should write down and ask your cardiologist, if no one here as had this done.
I’ve had a CRT-P fitted in 2012, which as 3 leads because I’m in heart failure, and I had an AvNode ablation after because of Atrial tachycardia. In 2019 I had that device upgraded and my 3 leads were connected to CRT-D (cardiac Resynchronisation Therapy) the P is pacemaker and the D is defibrillator. My original leads were connected to the new device and the old device battery needed to be replaced anyway. That’s all I know about leads. I think they need to go through it again with you. Good luck with your decision and I hope it works out well.
Thank you. Without an accurate diagnosis theyve been unable to offer an ablation so have jumped to the next available option. Can I ask how long did you wait for a battery change? It seems strange that, given the responses here, my consultant cannot simply add a new lead to my pacemaker part of my ICD. If it needs to be upgraded to do so then why not, as surely it can't last 17 years when theyve always said less than 10 years!
I told my consultant Id very likely be in touch with lots more questions yet, the list is growing already. Thank you for sharing your experience, it helps to chat with others on here as a main source of information to question my consultant further on.
My battery lasted 7 years. It started running low and because my heart failure got worse they decided to change it and upgraded it with one that as a defibrillator added on. They showed me the box they replaced the old one with. They gave me the defibrillator mainly because I was offered transplant if I wanted it, but in the end I declined it this year.
Maybe it’s because of what device you have now. It might not have a connection to plug in a new lead. I think you should ask them to explain more and put it in a report to you so you can go through it yourself. You need to make a decision but until you understand what that entails you can’t.
I totally agree, I like to make an informed decision having all the facts, especially with serious health concerns. To expect a decision on the spot is rather concerning when the facts aren't presented and the answers are so vague. No time to think it through and ask more so I went for the yes but wait option that buys time without a refusal being marked on my record. Im assuming that they still need my formal consent before proceeding so I can change ny mind before the procedure if necessary. Theres more questions than answers now and I'm grateful to hear input from you all on here as my friends are extremely supoortive but have no knowledge that can help to make the right decision. I was expecting a battery change which they say is a replacement box wired up to the existing leads but will ask if they can add a pacemaker lead or change to one that can without the lead extraction op. Whatever the op, if the results arent going to make much difference why risk it? If the chances are favourable, which I assume they must be to offer it then its maybe worth any risk but its all open to question at the moment. You've certainly been through a lot with your cardiac issues too. How do you manage day to day? You must feel so drained too?
It can be draining at times, but I don’t know if it’s a postcode lottery but I have had good support from my heart failure cardiologists, the device clinic and most recently my Gp, as apparently a lot of my care as been handed over to him, and he is now my designated Gp at my surgery. Also now I’m due to see my old Arrhythmia cardiologist. When I was first diagnosed I got given lots of books on my condition , I use to have a heart failure nurse also to weigh me do my blood pressure etc. but now my Gp as given me a nurse to do all that.
Hello I’ve been reading through your thread on your ICD issue with other members. I totally understand the problems you have with getting answers. I had by pass surgery 9 years ago for plumbing issues and was well looked after by cardiologist then for first 2 years and discharged when cocktail of meds and recovery from surgery was all good. GP at the time was also really good as he had a special interest in the heart and answered in depth all my questions. However fast forward a healthy and uneventful 9 years and I suddenly collapsed one morning whilst walking my dog. Next thing I know I am in CCU of local heart centre. Came out a week later with an implanted device called a CRT-D this apparently is a 3 lead pacemaker & Defibrillator. Not given any definitive answer as to what caused the collapse, just told this time it was due to a wiring issue and just waved me goodbye after a week with new device and Bisoprolol dosage tripled. Discharge letter made mention of cardiac doctors name but no referral info. When after trying new GP as struggling with Bisoprolol dosage got no help. I tried cardiac dept. To be given a phone appt with consultant who never then contacted me. So went to private wing, saw the man who actually did my implant and noted he was also a general cardiac consultant and paid to see him. Got meds sorted out and he very kindly added me to his nhs list. My question was originally why did I not get immediately re-reffered to my previous consultant who still worked at hospital. But like you I am slightly in limbo as to why this happened and what my future is. Sorry I can’t give you an answer to your question but I would be very interested to follow your progress and see if you get either answers or how any subsequent op goes for you. Hoping though as you say this is much later rather than sooner. Take care and good luck.
Hi Swalecliffe88 I can understand how confused you must be feeling. How can they just implant a device and not explain why and what it’s for. You should have had a follow up appointment so they could explain more. I know you said they didn’t contact you. I had the same problem years ago awaiting an ablation. It turns out the secretary forgot to put me on the list. I found out after I phoned the secretary to find out what’s happening.
If your problem is electrical (wiring) then you see an Arrhythmia doctor, I think they’re called EP now, you have to look up the full title. The defibrillator was added maybe because you had a dangerous arrhythmia so if it occurs you would get a shock to bring your rhythm back to normal, I’m assuming all of this. I have the same device as you fitted also because I’ve been getting a lot of different arrhythmias. Now I’m beginning to get a lot of ventricular tachycardia (VT), which are the dangerous ones. I am now going to see my original arrhythmia cardiologist who I saw in 2003 on and off, for ablations. I’m still seeing a heart failure doctor also because my heart failure is quite bad. They do discharge you back to your Gp’s care after you’ve had certain procedures done. But you can always ask your Gp to refer you back if you become unwell, which I’ve done several times in the past. Good luck, and hopefully you will get answers. Make sure they explain it so you understand, and get them to send you a report about the discussion.
Hello thank you for your reply. It’s confusing like you said, because I have heart failure and dodgy wiring so finding that happy medium of professional with expertise in both is not easy that’s why I went for a general heart consultant. I read and researched about my Ischemia so have good understanding of the plumbing. But as they can’t definitely tell what the cause of my SCA was then it’s more difficult to learn about how or what to do to help myself if you get my drift we are very lacking in far South East of this country in professionals. You have to be referred to London like I was for my by pass.
I have both too, that’s why I’m going to see both heart failure cardiologist in October and arrhythmia one in November. It will be interesting to see if I just end up seeing one of them in the end.
Thank you. That was a shock just when you had a fairly steady 9 years. You had a good follow up originally but with an ICD it very much seems like its bye bye now, discharged and see your GP if you need anything. That appears to be the most common complaint on the fb SCA survivors page. Its a huge shock, a trauma to handle being so close to death but we get fixed with an ICD and Bisoprolol, discharged and no follow up or support until either referred back or end up back in CCU and see other cardiologists. Maybe my consultant felt she didnt need to intervene while I was being seen by other consultants on duty so often as she will have been notified, and possibly even consulted, each time. I did consider going private to get to speak to her as she mainly does private work now and v little nhs time but Im reluctant to pay for more vague replies! I'd rather get another opinion instead but fear it may hamper what relationship I have with my own consultant. Its possible that you didn't get referred to your original consultant because of staff changes or restrictions on the time and numbers, or simply that its a different issue this time? When I asked my consultant about cardio rehab she said thats for heart attack patients and those with plumbing issues, not for SCA patients as thats electrical faults. It could be that your collapse after 9 years was due to a different section ie electrical so they didn't refer you back to your plumbing consultant?
The important thing now is that you have a good consultant who you can speak to when necessary and hopefully one who can answer questions in as much detail as you require. My consultant was very efficient and very nice when she treated me for my SCA. She did a neat job of fitting my ICD too and was sympathetic on my re admission for a dvt days after discharging me but unfortunately since then the communication has been somewhat lacking. I felt rushed on the telephone appt and although not quite as rushed during our face to face appt Im just not making any headway as despite going in with a written list of questions I still ended up with so many more questions afterwards.
As my Quinedine is hospital prescription only I have to phone every 3 months for a repeat to be issued. With staff tel no changes its been a nightmare at times so my consultants secretary gave me her email address to order further prescriptions. My last inpatient visit to CCU a few years ago was supposed to be followed up with an appt with my own consultant. Although requested by the duty cardiologist I heard nothing so I reminded her secretary when ordering my prescription by email and thats whwn I got the telephone apot 3 months later. Then she left so that route was no longer available! However, as that was far more efficient than phone calls I will attemp to contact the new secretary and ask if I may email my questions along with the next prescription order. My list is still growing at the moment!
We could do with a weekly consultant session of Q&As on here although we can ask the nurse questions. People say avoid referring to Dr Google but in many cases it seems the only option. The main thing is we can all support each other which is essential for so many of us. I hope you find the answers you need too
Take care and good luck too!
Ahhh bless you for that lovely answer. Yes was told they thought the reason for my SCA was due to the scaring left from my heart attack 9 years ago. Which has aged and caused the electrical misfiring. From what I have gathered from Dr Google it is Ventricular based rather than AF as VF or VT is the only reason they do implants. So that’s the only info I really have. Our local GP practice doesn’t now have any permanent GP and only phone appts. so I’m not even considering them in my heart condition equation. Only general health issues. I did join the Cardiac Survivors group you mentioned. But I have to admit I found it a little depressing and left. I think I dealt with the mortality shock 9 years ago when at age of 60 consultant told me I needed by pass within 2 weeks otherwise I would not last longer. That makes you take a really deep breath and grounds you to reality pretty damn quick. Wishing you a good outcome and healthy long life x
Hi, I can't believe a month has flown past already! Thank you for your kind words.It makes sense now you say about the scarring from your heart attack 9 years ago. It only takes the tiniest bit of scarring, apparently, to affect your electrical system. It is a constant complaint from SCA patients about the lack of follow up care compared to the plumbing side of cardiac health. Its great that they try to re educate heart attack patients about diet exercise and lifestyle but that would actually benefit all of us generally as so many cardiac problems besides many auto immune issues are so affected by diet.
My consultant still cannot advise on where my original problem is as there was no scarring anywhere to indicate where my 'electrics' were misfiring from. My heart appeared totally healthy following my SCA and its still a mystery now!
I totally get what you say about your mortality following a shock like we've all had in one way or another. As amazing as the body is it suddenly makes you realise just how fragile we can be. As much as its been a lifechanger physically, it does take some getting used to the trauma of being on that knife edge. I scared myself even more when reading about the life expectancy after surgery and having ICDs fitted. I read it as approx 8 yrs until I realised they meant you can get an EXTRA 8 - 10 years on top of your expected life span. Phew! My conditions genetic apparently yet my dad with his pacemaker is still going well and about to celebrate his 93rd birthday, so if anything like him I have some good mileage yet! I hope so as the shock of facing things ahead makes you wake up and realise time isnt eternal and theres so much more I really want to do with my life yet. I may be slower and less fit but I'm certainly going to do what I can do and have a goal of doing that parachute jump yet, maybe for my 90th birthday!
For now my life is about more than surviving, its about appreciating life and doing the things I've always wanted to, despite my cardiac health. Although my bucket list keeps growing faster than I can tick things off, I've been prioritising and working out what I'd really regret not doing. Now Im trying to make those things happen!
In the meantime, an update since last month....
My echo results came in fairly quickly this time and all looks good with my valves and pumping so the plumbings good. The previous echo showed similar but slight thickening of the heart wall. This recent test showed no further change so thats a relief too. My blood tests came back with a very low reading on iron and Vit D so I'm on prescribed supplements and feel a bit better, ie a little less tired now, and ceryainly more enthusiasm to crack on and do things when the heat isnt too much! The folate tablets cause constipation whereas the prescibed 2 quinedine daily causes upset tums but in the heat or days with frequent AFs I can take quinedine in the morning along with the folate and a quinedine at night and all is good now! A little unpredictable at times and go a bit dizzy or weirdly everything appears like pre fainting but it quickly passes now. Eating less greens in summer I guess mustve affected my iron levels like that but I have a lot of spinach every week!
I've also found out the name of the electrocardiologist who I saw previously, but once I checked him out I thought thats not the one I remember, he looks totally different so I'm unsure about that now! I will see what else I can find out and await further answers to my questions sent to my own cardiology consultant in the meantime.
And the final really good note.... My consultant also wrote to my gp with the results, adding a footnote to say although the operation is invasive, she can now proceed to add a pacing lead without having to extract the old lead! Thats one huge relief!
Now its just a case of getting the rest of my questions answered, ie... is it a normal standard procedure to have the sinus node ablation so my heart is only paced mechanically with the pacemaker, and will it likely prevent the AFs? Also, by 'invasive' does that apply to all ablation surgeries generally?
I hope you are enjoying life too and are making good progress on your journey. Wishing you a healthy long life too, and to everyone on here. Its great to support each other and share our experiences, to know there are others who completely understand, and those too who simply want to offer support. Thank you to all of you, its very much appreciated. Onwards and upwards!
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