meds or ablation for arrthyhmia control

[lagoya]

hi
i was just wondering what people feel if they had a choice to use meds or have an ablation to help with their arrthyhmia

[lagoya]

your right exercise is very important both for the body and the mind just small walks if u can or u could do tai -chi a form of yoga which is slow moving and relaxing and will ease the muscles for you i feel in time if u can u will gain more confidence in doing so

hope u are well today

[banglamom]

Great for you... in the gym 5x/week.  I essentially stopped mostly everything a year and half ago when ANYTHING I did was a trigger for me to go out of rhythm- mostly to a rate in the 200s.  I hate that I feel fat, out of shape, and weaker than I ever have.  In the meantime, it seems to take even less to trigger things.  Sometimes I think, ow well, just LET it happen and try to do something, but when it does happen, I back off and try to get it to stop.  A couple times of late, it has been SO stupid.  My Mom was driving and went on a bumpy road, then I was having "engine knock".  There was a song on the radio I liked, so I turned the volume WAY up and then... out of rhythm.  I should just go on  walks 5x a week like you and try to roll with it.  That is a brave idea... I like it.

[RickDG]

I have had three ablations in past 5 mos and tried a couple of meds, none of which has completely gotten rid of my VTach.  If I could choose one that was guaranteed to work I'd choose the ablation because I'm not a big fan of taking meds and an ablation is (should be) a one time thing.  I have to do something because my VTach isn't something I can live with until some miracle cure happens.  Actually started acupuncture last week, will let you know how it goes.  In the meantime, I'm in the gym 5x a week pushing it - I'd rather keel over w/ VTach in a gym than of a heart attack on the couch.

[ashlee023]

I think the reason it is an epidemic isn't the fact that they didn't have it before, but that they were not as good at diagnosing it or the technology wasn't as good. Of course I could be wrong might have something to do with all the things that are going in are bodies these days.

[banglamom]

Arrhythmia meds are not bp meds in total, but nearly every med that will help to slow down a heart, drops your bp.  I take 7 cardiac drugs and they barely make me have a reasonable rate and rhythm.  By the time I have enough on board, my pacemaker runs the rate/ rhythm (which does an excellent job) but my pressure bottoms out.  I hate to go to the md and ask because they are ALWAYS willing to try something else, something new and change ad infinitum.  I never even get a chance to adjust.  If I don't take them all, my rate is high even when I sleep.  

I suppose the plus is my organs and not in any hypertensive crises and I will likely NEVER have a stroke.  I don't know if it is good or bad that I know as much as I do about it all, because I feel compelled to find the answer.  Maybe somebody else would just think the md knows it all and will tell them what to do.  I can't even really call a md without knowing exactly what it is that I want.  Good luck to you all as well.  Many blessings!

[Bromley]

My vote would be to give every heart rhythm patient a more educated choice, i.e.  better patient education if possible before any treatment program, meds or ablation or both. Education should include the latest medical recommendations and guidelines and the rationale for them (i.e. meds or ablation) for the patient's situation, and some training regarding possible modes of decision making. I know this is a lot to expect, but these decisions we make are of great significance and need to be weighed very carefully. I just dont know how this training could be delivered adequately via our current method of one on one with patient and doctor, especially given the time crunch these EP's have. Would it be better to use computer based, self-paced instruction, and how would it be organized?

[Jerry_NJ]

I tolerated AFib well.  While I am in AFib all the time 24/7 I am generally unaware of it unless I doing physical work.  Then breathless and easily fatigued.  But, I also recover fast, just stop on an upgrade or stairs, "catch my breath" and take off again.

I am now off arrhythmia drugs (last was 425 Rythml SR twice a day), and down (for me) to only 100 mg of Metoprolo ER (50 mg twice a day).  The latter is for slowing my HR, and while it also lowers my BP, to tolerable levels, maybe 110/70 would be a typical number for me..that may have something to do with the breathlessness..not sure.

I also take Warfarin, and I think I could get by with taking only Warfarin.  I haven't had that discussion with my EP or Cardiologist.  I'm still thinking over a more aggressive treatment program. From the posts of many on this forum I could conclude a minimum treatment program is preferred.   I do worry about long term effects from meds, but I think all those I'm taking have been used for many more years than I've been on them and they are considered safe.

[ireneo]

Anti-arrhythmics are different than BP meds. My arrhythmias are annoying but not life threatening so I can cheat and not take my meds. A high BP however will damage your organs. I have a sweet friend who has had 2 kidney transplants now because he hated his BP meds. I agree with you though that a BP of 70/30 is just too low. I would fight and argue for another way or med to manage it better.

[banglamom]

Is everyone else in the place where there IS an option NOT to take all the meds.  I mull it over EVERY day.  My md has told me that I wouldn't live too long without them.  Sometimes I still think I should try and see how long that really might be.  In general I find that I tolerate 180 better than I tolerate a bp of 70/30.  That seems to be the price of the meds.  An open heart would be a huge pain and a huge risk.  I just need to find out if they can make it a for sure thing.  The only serious aftereffect of 3 failed ablations is near bankruptcy.  There is no lingering effects of having had ablations- they are just done.  I sure wish the whole thing could be.  Thanks everyone.  This has been one interesting conversation.

[RNRita]

I have had very few incidents of SVT, but I'll tell you all this.  I hate tachycardia, so if I was plagued by SVT on top of these PVCs, fibromyalgia, sciatica, MAV, GERD, and the other list of ailments I have, I'd jump on a gurney and shove the cath in my OWN groin!

[Momto3]

You guys might find this thread helpful.  Maybe someone could kickstart the old thread or start a new one.

http://www.medhelp.org/posts/show/389334

Happy Halloween everyone!

[lagoya]

i believe  with knowledge and a greather understanding maybe not a cure per-say will happen but certainely a more confident approach to dealing with arrhythmias in the long run .some people have terrible side effects to hr meds some dont all depends on body make up etc ,thats why the list idea is good and will be posted by greendave over the next few days ,when a person has good knowledge and understanding about any situition it puts a person in a better position to move forward etc.
my ep says the same all they have is meds at the moment if ablation fail or not deemed approtiate in the first place for nuisance arrhythmias.i feel diet plays a massive role in all functions of the body and our diet's today are a lot different from less than 10 yrs ago so who knows maybe more will add to this

[tsco]

The ablation procedures are not bad at all.  Some people..it helps, Some it doesn't.  Some it assists in helping for a while.
I have tried most of the meds at one time or another.  They usually are not that bad.

Let's face it...there is no "holy grail" cure.  I am banking on some technological advance that gets rid of this for all of us so far it ha not happened.  I recently asked my EP about advances and ot the big thumbs down.

I think we all need to bond together and push someone (whoever) legislation, medical community,  I don't know and draw as much attention to this as possible.  I think our problems are considered nuicanse and doesn't get the research it deserves. We all know how disabling this is (mostly mentally) but ask a doc about disability they look at you like this isn't even a real problem.  I like the idea about a list..great idea.
Maybe if we could find all the famous people with these problems (people with money) we could get a movement going.     Ever wonder why this is such an epedemic now?
Is it what we eat?  MY grandmother claimed they rarely heard of all these missed betas and such way back when.

[lagoya]

hi
i agree i would take another ablation rather than the meds for now but my ep is resvered on the idea for the moment i hate anti arrhythmias and am trying my best to stay away from them after being on them last year .my first ablation worked to a certain degree but i am still getting svt just not as rapid but it is still high enough for the nerves,it is difficult to make choices in order to secure a better quality of life when these choices involve certain risks .................i hope u feel better soon

to betty
hi ya
delighted to see u are good hows the power walking going

[mabebesc]

I really feel for what you are going through.  I wish I had the answer for you. If I had known that ,my ablation was going to go as smoothly as it did, I never would have wasted so many years living in fear and dealing with the SVT episodes.  Life is full of unknowns and sometimes risks.  I guess each person has to decide what risks are worth taking and which are not.
For me, after 36 years of dealing with SVT, I had truly had it.  I was anxious all the time that it would start up and just couldn't enjoy life to the fullest.  I decided the ablation was a risk I had to take and I made up my mind that whatever happened, I would live with the consequences.
Good luck and I truly wish you the best.

[banglamom]

If it was simple cut and dried, I would rather have had the ablation(s) and not have to have the medications.  There is a lot less side effects to the ablation.  It wasn't terribly comfortable and there was a certain "scary" factor... but then it was done.  Unfortunately, it didn't work.  So after three ablations that were meant to be able to get me off the meds, I am on more than ever.  The effects are so much, I am now trying to determine... which would be better??? ... meds or an open heart procedure to stop the rhythms.  It would obviously be way more painful and risky, but maybe after it was done, I wouldn't feel like my life was RULED by heart medicine.

[mabebesc]

Hi everyone,
I understand where all of you are coming from.  I, like you, looked for the magic answer that would prevent my SVT from starting up.  I waited a long time to have the ablation after being on a beta blocker since 1991.  I never found the answer I was looking for after trying many different things.
I didn't like the idea of burning the area in my heart that was causing the problem , but the SVT was making me so nervous, I felt I had to so something.  My quality of life was affected by the anxiety I was feeling.
The ablation was the right decision for me.  On the 4th of this month, it will be 3 months since I've had SVT.  The ablation changed my life.
I hope all of you find the answer that will work best for you.
Betty

[ireneo]

I'm unsure about them both. Too many meds are hit and miss. They try this and that hoping it will help. Ablations are fine (I've had 3!) but I hope in time they can fine tune the diagnoses so they'll know for sure when an ablation will actually work and when it won't. At this stage I'm done with ablations, I've quit my med and will simply live with my jumps and starts and racing here and there. At least I know what to expect when it happens.

[greendave]

Yep that would be good - it would also be good somwewhere as a list - people will add omments to a thread and somehoe we need to correlate the data.
I'm in the UK and it's nearly midnight here and I've got an early start tomorroe so I'll need to get some sleep but will catch up with this idea over the weekend.
I think we could really do somr good with this
goodnight from the UK
dave

[lagoya]

thats a great idea
good one guys
i am sure dave or sassylassie  can post that up either as a thread

[SassyLassie]

Maybe we could start a new thread and call it: "Triggers for PVC's and other Related Arrythimias" That might get folks attention, and they could add to it as well.

[greendave]

ypur post appeared AFTER I posted my response so  now we have a team of 3. where do we put the list?
dave

[greendave]

How about we get a list together of things or circumstances that we know are 100% guaranteed to kick off SVT's or PVC's or both for us. then when others get symptoms they could either tick off things from the list or add somrthing new.
that would be cool

dave

[lagoya]

i agree the holy grail is there to be found in a more safe and natural form i hope together we can piece it together and create a picture that paints a smile :o)