Atrial Fibrillation (AFib) Support Group

Has your son seen an electrophysiologist, a specialty in the field of cardiology? Since he is so young an ablation might be the answer. I had an ablation in Feb. of 09, and so far I am feeling much better but still on some meds. I will soon be able to stop the meds. Many people have good success with the ablation. By the way, what are they doing for him when he goes to the hospital?

At his age I would recommend an ablation also. I was diagnoised at 40. At first I had attacks a couple of times a years. But after some years the a-fib became more persistent. I had an ablation done alittle over a year ago. It was the best thing I did. I regret not having it done a couple of years ago. The ablation is not too invasive and risks are mimimual. Just make sure to do your homework if he decides to go for the ablation. Find a EP that does lots of them. The better the EP the better the outcome.

When he goes to the hospital they hook him up to an Iv to bring his heart rate down.Sometimes he is there a few hours and the last time it was a couple of days before it slowed.He seems to be afraid of the operation.I can't make this decision for him but I wanted to find out all the info I can from other people who have this so I can maybe help him make a decision.Are any of you in the Chicago land area?

I'm 38, almost 39, and was diagnosed last year. I've only had three serious episodes since last year so my EP has suggested that we hold off until we can be sure how persistent it's going to be. Once it does become more persistent we will move to meds, most likely metoprolol and flecanide. If that doesn't work, we'll move to the ablation. As per the comments made here, I think the ablation is generally a good move (particularly if you are young). However, it is not without risk and there is still a lot of 'art' in addition to science. My EP, who is terrific and has done a ton of ablations, seems to believe that if we can stick to meds for a while it will provide us with another few years for ablations to be refined / perfected and a greater pool of outcomes to be mapped. I've gotten the same advice from a very well-regarded EP at the Cleveland Clinic.

The advice I received was exactly the same as Shaka123.
It was a case of monitor and wait until there was more evidence to suggest that ablation was the right way to go.
It is reassuring to hear that someone on the other side of the world got the same advice.

I just had my ablation and so far so good.

It sounds like your son is in a similar situation that many of us have experience going through. Many people on this forum (including myself) have gone for the ablation. I was quite afraid when my surgery was coming up as well, but a life in and out of hospital with AFib is not fun no matter what your age is! Many of us on this forum will highly recommend the Ablation for AFib, especially when the medications aren't working. I'd urge your son to come join us, and talk to us about his experiences and thoughts about his treatment. As scary as it can be, an ablation is actually a very safe procedure with a fast recovery time, and it can drastically improve your son's quality of life.