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Ablation for chronic PVCs. Worth the risk?
I've been dealing with the darn PVCs on a daily basis for 8 months now. It seems like they are becoming more frequent. I'm taking potassium and angstrom mg for 2-3 weeks with no improvement. Every time I have an active or stressful day I am punished at night with a string of PVCs that can last for hours. They appear to be adrenaline related. It has made my life miserable.
My EP gave me a special script for an EKG for when I got a bad episode, so last night I went to the ER and they hooked me up. They saw PVCs coming every few seconds, and the technician said they all looked identical, so it appears that they are unifocal.
I'm not sure what to do here. I don't have PVCs ALL day, but I do get them EVERY day. Some days are manageable, other days are very frustating. I am living right now for the moments when I am PVC free. Not a good way to live your life.
So my question to all you fellow sufferers is, is the ablation worth the possible risks? And what are they?
Thanks for your responses.
My EP gave me a special script for an EKG for when I got a bad episode, so last night I went to the ER and they hooked me up. They saw PVCs coming every few seconds, and the technician said they all looked identical, so it appears that they are unifocal.
I'm not sure what to do here. I don't have PVCs ALL day, but I do get them EVERY day. Some days are manageable, other days are very frustating. I am living right now for the moments when I am PVC free. Not a good way to live your life.
So my question to all you fellow sufferers is, is the ablation worth the possible risks? And what are they?
Thanks for your responses.
Best Answer
I say go for it and at least try the ablation; they may go in and find nothing or go in and find exactly what's causing the problem and be able to fix it.
Physician / Provider Pocket Total Charges
First ER Visit. $399.51 $2,439.00
Holter Monitor $47.60 $890.00
Ambulance $966.25 $966.25
Second ER Visit $735.44 $1,481.70
Initial EP Visit $18.90 $270.00
Ehco - Preop Labs $983.29 $2,749.19
Hospital Charges $4,249.61 $75,739.50
Anethesia $0.00 $4,085.00
EP Fee $439.20 $12,930.00
Post Ablation ER Visit
(take a week off) $191.34 $2,235.60
Grand total $8,031.14 $103,786.24
Pocket amount paid does NOT include $2000 health savings account. (Which I blew at the first ER visit) Total amount billed was discounted about 35% overall.
First ER Visit. $399.51 $2,439.00
Holter Monitor $47.60 $890.00
Ambulance $966.25 $966.25
Second ER Visit $735.44 $1,481.70
Initial EP Visit $18.90 $270.00
Ehco - Preop Labs $983.29 $2,749.19
Hospital Charges $4,249.61 $75,739.50
Anethesia $0.00 $4,085.00
EP Fee $439.20 $12,930.00
Post Ablation ER Visit
(take a week off) $191.34 $2,235.60
Grand total $8,031.14 $103,786.24
Pocket amount paid does NOT include $2000 health savings account. (Which I blew at the first ER visit) Total amount billed was discounted about 35% overall.
It sounds like you had several issues to deal with at the same time. For me, the PVCs are benign and unifocal but have changed the way I live my life. I'm literally avoiding many of the things I enjoy out of concern that they will cause more PVCs. My nights are a struggle. Just about every time I have an active day, I get a string of PVCs starting around 8 or 9pm lasting for hours.
This is the weirdest, most bothersome thing I have ever had to deal with in my life and I want it to end asap. If an ablation can do that, I'm game. Taking pills for the next 10, 20 or 30 yrs doesn't appeal to me, and frankly I doubt they will help anyway.
This is the weirdest, most bothersome thing I have ever had to deal with in my life and I want it to end asap. If an ablation can do that, I'm game. Taking pills for the next 10, 20 or 30 yrs doesn't appeal to me, and frankly I doubt they will help anyway.
When you had your ablation, were PVCs the only reason you got it? Or did you have other issues at the time? Did you have any SVT, myopathy, prior to the ablation? Do you believe that the ablation brought on these other issues, or were they already present?
My greatest concern is that I have the ablation done for the PVCs (which kept me up until 2am last night BTW) and then other problems arise.
My greatest concern is that I have the ablation done for the PVCs (which kept me up until 2am last night BTW) and then other problems arise.
when i first went in back in July 2009, I went in to have the ablation for very frequent unifocal pvc's; and I only had rare psvt...it was going to be quick and easy >95% success rate quoted and I would no longer have any problems...I became my EP's worst nightmare and had him and all the others I've seen scratching their heads.
it depends on the day and what test was done whether my heart is "structurally" normal
Here's an example:
July 2009 my first echo - structurally normal heart
August 26, 2009 EP Study w/ablation
August 27 2009 Cardiac MRI structurally normal heart (nothing found)
August 28 2009 Cardiac catherization showed - nonischemic cardiomyopathy (HOCM); LVEDP was 34; systemic hypertension
April 2010 Echo - HOCM (lvis thickened and walls thinned)
March 2011 Echo - structurally normal
I've been told by 4 cardiologist and 2 EP's this is NOT my heart that it's my ANS system...2 cardiologists and 2 Ep's say it is my heart (HOCM) and I have classic symptoms of it. This is why I still have no answers; so I'm going to a doctor who deals with HCM patients at cleveland clinic in weston FL when the weather cools down some.
sometimes, until they go in and are actually working inside the heart they think things are normal until they run into problems like with me...most of the time though ablation may help and be a cure
it depends on the day and what test was done whether my heart is "structurally" normal
Here's an example:
July 2009 my first echo - structurally normal heart
August 26, 2009 EP Study w/ablation
August 27 2009 Cardiac MRI structurally normal heart (nothing found)
August 28 2009 Cardiac catherization showed - nonischemic cardiomyopathy (HOCM); LVEDP was 34; systemic hypertension
April 2010 Echo - HOCM (lvis thickened and walls thinned)
March 2011 Echo - structurally normal
I've been told by 4 cardiologist and 2 EP's this is NOT my heart that it's my ANS system...2 cardiologists and 2 Ep's say it is my heart (HOCM) and I have classic symptoms of it. This is why I still have no answers; so I'm going to a doctor who deals with HCM patients at cleveland clinic in weston FL when the weather cools down some.
sometimes, until they go in and are actually working inside the heart they think things are normal until they run into problems like with me...most of the time though ablation may help and be a cure
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I went in for a broken foot in June 2009 and my primary heard pvc's and what he thought was valve damage. He sent me to a cardiologist who did an ekg, echo, holter and stress test. Tests showed nothing was wrong structurally; just minor things that didn't add up to anything. (stress test had red flags)
The first EP I saw who was head of the largest heart hospital here said if I didn't have an ablation to try and get rid of the pvc's I could develop cardiomyopathy but he was positive the ablation would get rid of my problem.
I didn't quite believe him and went in for other opinions; the other drs said it wasn't as severe as the first EP said and tried me on Toprol - big mistake; it sent me to the ER in distress and they gave me a shot to try to counter act the med - after 11 hours my BP wouldn't go above 70/40 and my hr 40 so I told them to let me go since they didn't find anything other than pvc's. (red flag) the EKG showed I had multifocal pvc's and cardiomegaly (heart enlargement) another red flag
I went in to have a tilt table test before my ablation and when they gave me Nitro, my heart stopped they told me that was "rare" to have that happen (another big red flag). Then a few hours later I had an EP study and ablation which found that I had problems in the RV Apex and RVOT; and I went into long runs of polymorphic VT 3 separate times. (huge red flag) my heart stopped and the first time was really bad and almost didn't start. I think what happened during my EPS was Propofol messed with my heart rhythm.
When I woke up they explained what happened and told me they thought it was ARVD or HCM but most likely ARVD with my symptoms and that I needed to have a MRI and Cathierzation and an ICD implant.
somewhere dr's have missed the mark; one day my heart is normal then not normal and I have something benign then malignant; then normal again? doesn't make much sense...for me, I think I've had something wrong my entire life and it's just been missed and different meds mess with my heart; which is consistent with HCM or HOCM patients.
I wasn't scared about ablation; I had major surgery before and knew it would be a pretty quick and easy procedure. for most patients, ablation can be an answer and cure and may even help diagnose a problem. I think it's better to go through with it and find out you have something wrong and be in a place if something does happen like with me, at least you're right there where they can treat it immediately.