Ablation yesterday. All good so far. - Heart Rhythm Diso...

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Ablation yesterday. All good so far.

Fazerboy profile image
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Hi, anyone who follows this site will probably have seen earlier posts from me. To recap if not, I started to get episodes of high hr mainly noticeable when cycling. I eventually was diagnosed as having svt. I initially put off having an ablation mainly because I was scared of the damage it might do. Anyway my svt got worse and I went on Bisoprolol 1.25mg. I asked on here as to whether people generally thought an ablation was a good idea. Almost all said it was. Hardly anyone regretted having one. So I got put back on the list. I waited nearly 4 months then had my ablation yesterday. I went in at 7.30 am. They took a blood sample and checked my bp and did an ECG. I then got gowned up and led to the theatre (after meeting my team of about 6 people). It was a bit daunting going in. I lay on a bed and had a drip connected to a canular in my arm and I was given an oxygen mask. I was told later that I breathe oxygen through the mask but also anaesthetic if they want to make me more drowsy. They put a needle in my groin which I hardly felt. This numbed the area. I then just about felt them pressing lightly on my groin. I gather that this was when they fed the catheter through to my heart. I didn't feel any of this. They started at 9.30 am and finished at 11.00am. It didn't seem like that that long so maybe I was unconscious for some of the time. This was with a local anaesthetic not a general one. Near the end I found that I could see a monitor and I could see the catheter wires. They also showed me the catheter wires after they had withdrawn them, sort of like fishing wires. I asked how it was and they said initially they could cause the svt to occur but after the burning for want of a better word they could no longer make it trigger. So I was trundled back to the ward. This was probably the worst bit. I had to lie on my back for almost 3 hours for the hole in my groin to heal enough. After not having eaten since the previous day I was given a cheese sandwich but I had to eat it by staying completely flat, not even a pillow. Also I was told not to choke or cough because of the groin hole. I then found that digesting anything whilst lying that flat wasn't easy. Eventually I was deemed well enough to get up and go home. This was yesterday. I have to take it easy for this week and not do much next week really. My hr seems ok. No pains or anything. I think I just have to wait for the scar to form properly and hope that I no longer have any svt episodes. I am not on any meds now. So to anyone thinking about having an ablation there isn't really anything to worry about. One thing maybe which was a bit of an eyeopener, they said that with my svt the ablation was near my AV node and there was maybe a 1% chance that I would need a pacemaker. I have a loop recorder implant and don't notice it so decided that I would accept the risk (very low) and if I need a pm then so be it. I didn't need one.

Generally all ok. I hope this may be useful to others who aren't sure as to what it entails. I am told that it isn't a miraculous cure and there are risks to consider but in my case I would definitely have another if needed.

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Fazerboy
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Stumpy47 profile image
Stumpy47

Well done Fazerboy very similar to my own experience as you know. My ablation was successful in eradicating the svt, but still had ectopics & bradycardia!! I had my PM fitted 3 weeks ago ( took less time than ablation) though a tad more uncomfortable for a week or so & back on Bisoprolol!! Good luck in your recovery keep us updated.

Fazerboy profile image
Fazerboy in reply toStumpy47

I had a loop recorder fitted over a year ago in no time at all. I suppose a pm takes a bit longer though.

Stumpy47 profile image
Stumpy47 in reply toFazerboy

My dual chamber took less than an hour,well impressed I was.

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