guidance family history

[Lydia_1]

hi all, hope your all well ?

I am after some guidance regarding AF and heart issues.

Some of you know my uncle who lives with me and mum had heart surgery. It has come to light there is a common theme in the family. His and my mums brother passed away last week due to heart. We know there mother and father both had heart issues, with AF being a running theme, my uncle who passed had it from what we can gather. Another sibling also had a stroke recently. Is there anyway people can be screened for it ? My mother had heart surgery 15 years ago but I want her checked for AF due to her getting older.

[Threecats]

Hi Lydia1

I am sorry for your recent loss. My condolences to you and your family. As far as I’m aware there isn’t a screening program for AF detection. However, the telltale sign of AF, as you may know, is an irregular heart beat with no rhythm to it at all. (I should know, I’m in AF 24/7!) The easiest way to check whether your heart is in rhythm is by feeling your pulse. If you place your middle and index fingers on your wrist just below the base of your thumb, you’ll feel it. You’re looking for a nice, steady, regular rhythm. Count the beats for 30 seconds and multiply by 2 to get heart rate. Anything between 60 - 100 is considered normal.

The problem with AF is that it can come and go , particularly in the early stages , this is paroxysmal AF. It’s notoriously difficult to capture episodes but some folk have had success wearing fitness watches that have the functionality to detect irregular heart rhythms, such as the Apple Watch and others. There have certainly been a few folk on the AF forum who were only made aware they had AF because their smart watch alerted them to the fact. That’s an option that might perhaps be worth considering, given your family history.

All the best to you, TC