Michelle Novogradac had undiagnosed afib for nearly a decade. Her symptoms were chalkd up to stress.
The doctors didn’t figure out that afib was the issue until she had a seizure. Nobody’s sure if afib caused the seizure or not.
As happens with many afib patients she was placed on Pradaxa to help control the risk of stroke. Michelle also tried to change her lifestyle in order to manage her condition. None of it was particularly effective.
Here’s what happened next.
Michelle ended up having cryoablation, the type of ablation in which doctors freeze the sections of the heart to be scarred. The procedure took place on March 25, 2013, and “I have not had an episode since,” she said. “I feel great. It’s like it was 10 years ago, before all of this started.”
She still takes all of her medications, however. “My doctor said he didn’t want to change too much too soon,” she said.
This is another encouraging success story showing that modern medicine has a wide range of options which can help us move on with our lives after an afib diagnosis. With so many success stories ablation is looking like a better and better solution.
Have you had cyroablation or any other ablation procedure? How did it go? Did it put an end to all of your symptoms or do you still experiencing symptoms from time to time? Are you still on any medications?
Let me know in the comments below. I’d love to hear everyone’s stories.
‘Ive had ventricular tachacardia for over 20 years,I’ve had three ablations, It took me 6 yrs to ween myself off the poisons I was perscribed. I have a internal difibrilater for back up. I’m an olympic cyclist ( 88 Seoul ) and love to ride. However I now have now atrial fib as well. I am on deltiazem and Flecainide. I am considering having cyroablation but am worried about the procedure and hesitant to have it done at Kaiser Santa Clara. How do I go about making sure the doctors that do the procedure are experienced and not just beginers at the procedure using me for their practice. I’ve been taking Magnesium supplements and take magnesium sulfate baths when i’m in crisis mode, like tonight. I want to be healed. I’ve also been turned on to Kangen Water which I want to start drinking regularly. I eat a mostly veg diet and have cut out all sugars except honey.
Andy:
Thanks for stopping by and leaving a comment. I’m sorry to hear you’re “part of the club.” You want to find a center or doctor that has done at least 25 procedures per year. For me personally, that’s still a little low but that’s kind of the minimum. You also want to find a doctor that is a member of the Heart Rhythm Society as that designates that they are very experienced. Here is a link to their directory:
http://www.hrsonline.org/Find-a-Specialist#axzz3HmGIcVUV
I am also working on building a directory myself that will have only the most experienced doctors and centers for ablations.
I wish you the best in finding a cure for your afib!
Travis
Andy,
I just had my cryoablation done with Dr. Irwin in Tampa, Fl. He was involved in the original trials to get the procedure approved and he and his partner have done over 1000 of the procedures with a high success rate. You may want to check with an EP in your area if you are a candidate for cryoablation since you have had some other ablations.
Kent