Hi heart2222,
Thank so much for your concern! Hubby's ablation on Monday went well. He is CURRENTLY in NSR - yea! We brought him home from hospital yesterday and he took it pretty easy. He's sore and says he felt like he's "been hit by a truck" but for the most part, it seems to be a pretty good outcome. We really like the EP we chose, seems to be very thorough. He told us that Bruce's heart has been running "overtime" for so long that it is damaged. Probably functioning at around 20-25%. Hopefully, the normal rhythm will give the heart a chance to "heal" and repair itself. Just taking it a day at a time right now as we know it is WAY too soon to know if the ablation was a success. Trying not to get too worked up about the "20%-25%" news. Was shocked to hear it at first but hoping it can actually repair itself. I guess time will tell... this is such a complicated ailment :(

Glad to hear your good news!
Time will heal.

Take care.
Annette

Heart failure (low ejection fraction) is reversible with afib. petey

Yes, it does feel like being hit by a truck--- but he will start feeling better soon.
It's best to take it easy, and not worry too much.
Sending good thoughts your way.
D.

I agree also with the "hit by a truck" feeling! He should feel better by the 7th day after! Don"t worry!

Remember... feeling like you were hit by a truck is much better than actually being hit by a truck, particularly on blood thinners.

Everything is relative. It's all going to get better now.


petey

I agree with the "hit by a truck" statement. So many have used those exact same words after the ablation. Petey's statement is also true!! (:

Now he (and you) can relax and think it will get better now as each day passes instead of worrying about the ablation and what it will bring. Glad you liked your EP, that is a large part of the battle.

So glad to hear the excellent news. I hope his heart can recover and heal itself too. What does the EP say about that?

Always great to hear good news!!

Day one of NSR, with hopefully a lifetime to come! I have heard that the heart is a wonderul, strong (but strange, as we all know) mechanism, that can repair itself. I had my ablation very shortly after diagnosis, but the heart was a teensy bit damaged, and the nurse told me right off that this minor damage can (or did she say would? hmmm) be reversed with NSR. Petey seems to confirm this, so I think your hubby is going to be just fine...I don't want to hear ANY bad news about a fellow 1950s guy!

Bill

Thank you all for your positive words of encouragement!! It means so very much to us! Hopefully, "time will heal" the heart. Petey, can you add any more to your comment? You seem to be one of the "experts" on this site and was interested in knowing more about "heart failure being reversible."
I've got to be honest here and say that my hubby WAS a pretty heavy drinker and the doc said that HAS TO STOP! And it has. Hopefully, that will help with the healing (along with keeping the heart in sinus rhythm).
My hubby traveled around the world for many years for business and was a smoker and was under a lot of stress as he was a salesman. I think his previous lifestyle has had a lot to do with his heart's condition.
We keep reading about how the heart is an extremely strong organ that can rebuild/heal itself IF given the opportunity.
We hope and pray that his heart can and will do so... BTW, he does have the HUGEST heart - kindest man I've ever met... :)
Thank you again everyone. I will continue to give updates on Bruce's IMPROVING condition!

Can't change the past, just can affect the future. Good he has taken all this advice to heart. No pun intended.

Hope his recovery is quick and easy. Sounds like he didn't get any of the complications I experienced which is excellent!!

Hope he takes it easy to allow his heart to heal...

These are the types of things I have read:

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/HeartRhythmScreening/story?id=5213046
Now the good news is, the type of heart failure that atrial fibrillation causes typically is reversible. And that if you slow the atrial fibrillation down, or get rid of it, the lower chamber of the heart commonly will recover either completely or almost completely.


http://circ.ahajournals.org/content/119/18/2516.full
In 1937, a similar case was reported in which heart failure was reversed after restoration of sinus rhythm.23 Whipple et al24 provided the first experimental model for this condition, demonstrating that rapid and protracted atrial pacing led to low-output heart failure. Subsequent investigations have confirmed that persistent tachycardias can cause heart failure and that elimination of these arrhythmias reverses the hemodynamic and clinical manifestations associated with this syndrome.

petey

Thank you petey!! If we can just keep the heart in normal sinus rhythm, we may have a shot at "completely or almost completely" having the lower chamber of the heart recover! We hope and pray that this can happen...

So glad recovery is going well for him. I, too, hope that his heart repairs itself. Good luck.