Heart Ablation

[PZiglar01]

Just had a heart ablation on the 16th and still not able to sleep on my side due to pain in my chest. Also, get out of breath very easily. Is this normal after the ablation and how long does it last.

[beats]

I did not experience pain in my chestimate or shorNess of breath particularly- just general aches and weakness to be expected after a surgery. Without knowing your syptoms prior to the ablation I don't know if these are normal for you but if you are worried I would talk to your doctor. Good luck and I hope you feel better soon! X

[PeterWh]

I'm not surprised and I wouldn't have expected that you would have been able to. Using similar words to a Volunteer on another forum just because you don't have a big zip up your chest doesn't mean that it's a minor procedure. Your heart is very angry. It will take 3 to 6 months to settle down to it's new normal.

Your heart is not designed to be burnt. Just think how long a burn on your arm or hand takes to heal and the pain you feel in the meantime. They have naturally designed resistance to burns, knocks, etc.

There are loads of other people who have had ablations on the Atrial Fibrillation Forum on health unlocked and it's over 10 times more active. Suggest you Repost there and you'll get more responses.

You don't say if ablation was for flutter or AF.

[PZiglar01 in reply to PeterWh]

Ablation was for AF. Thanks for the information.

[teach2learn]

I personally didn't have those symptoms after either ablation, but wonder if it has more to do with your esophagus for which I was prescribed special lubricating/calming medication for a week following procedure. Not sure what they put down there, but it was done both times, so I suspect some sort of viewing contraption that was irritating. Anyway, what discomfort I experienced, though negligible, when prone, was from that.

[Denram]

It took me about 6 weeks before I could sleep easily on my left. This was partly due to the need to protect my stiches and let everything "Bed in". Regarding getting out of breath I experienced the opposite as I was not stressing myself out like before however I did experience it later on.

I have had adjustments made since to my ICD pacing which still makes life easier but I am more "puffy" now due to weight gain resulting from my new medication.

I would suggest you inform your GP as a priority and / or just get to A&E if it persists for another 48 hours.

[JonathanPittsCrick]

It sounds like a little blood may have leaked out from your heart into the lining around it (pericardium) – this is not very unusual and probably will settle in another week or so, but I think you should phone the arrhythmia nurse in the department and describe your symptoms. They may want to arrange an echocardiogram to see if there's more of a problem.

[PZiglar01]

Thanks so much. I will check into that.