Fibrillationatrial.info

Atrial Fibrillation Treatment: Catheter Ablation

admin — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 10:09:52 +0000

There are other treatment options for people with atrial fibrillation who find medications are not effective in controlling their heart fibrillation. One of these treatment options is catheter ablation, a nonsurgical procedure.
Catheter Ablation:
The procedure involves the insertion of flexible wires into the patient’s vein in the groin, and gradually threading up the wires to the heart. These wires have an electrode at their tip which sends out radio waves that generate heat. The heat generated by this electrode destroys the tissues in the patient’s heart that cause atrial fibrillation.
There are two classifications of catheter ablation procedures aim to treat an atrial condition or prevent its symptoms:
· Catheter ablation for treatment of atrial fibrillation – includes focal, circumferential and pulmonary vein ablations. Focal or targeted ablation focuses its treatment on specific areas of the heart that are producing abnormal electrical impulses that causes atrial fibrillation. Circumferential ablation is designed to destroy the heart tissue that allows atrial fibrillation to progress. A physician may sometimes use both these ablations to cure atrial fibrillation.
Meanwhile, a pulmonary vein ablation blocks electrical impulses that originate from pulmonary vein. This procedure also prevents the atrial condition from happening.
· Catheter ablation for controlling atrial fibrillation symptoms – Nodal ablation is used to control atrial fibrillation symptoms. This procedure is used in cases that pulmonary vein or focal ablation failed to stop the cause of rapid and erratic heart rhythm. Nodal ablation involves the destruction of atrioventricular node to prevent it from sending electrical impulses to the heart’s lower chambers or ventricles. A patient who decided to have a nodal ablation may be required to use a pacemaker permanently to regulate his heart rhythm.
Nodal ablation works only to control a patient’s heart rate and reduce symptoms. It does not treat or prevent irregular heart rate. A patient is advised to take anticoagulants such as warfarin.
Catheter ablation may be an effective way to prevent or treat atrial fibrillation but it carries with some serious risks, including:
· Stroke — brought about by a sudden interruption of the flow of blood to the brain.
· Heart puncture
· Heart attack
· Risk for emergency heart surgery
· Pulmonary vein damage
· Pulmonary vein stenosis – a condition that involves the narrowing of pulmonary vein
· Bruising
· Leaking blood vessel
· Phrenic nerve injury – this condition can cause diaphragm paralysis
· Pericarditis – an inflammation of pericardium, the sac that covers and protects the heart.
· Cardiac tamponade – a condition that may need emergency heart surgery
· Sudden death

Atrial Fibrillation: Prevention

admin — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 10:08:44 +0000

Atrial fibrillation is a preventable type of arrhythmia. Here are some steps you can take to avoid heart rhythm disturbances and steady your heartbeat:
· Drink 8 to 10 glasses of water daily.
· Eat no less than two servings of fish every week. Studies showed that eating salmon, tuna and trout may lead to a healthy heart. Also, eating broiled or baked fish may reduce risk for atrial defibrillation.
· Avoid binge drinking.
· Avoid caffeine-based drinks. As a nervous system stimulant, caffeine, when taken in small amounts, may prevent you from falling asleep. However, if taken in large amount, caffeine may cause heart palpitation which is one of the symptoms of atrial fibrillation.
· Avoid smoking. Nicotine can wreak havoc on the body system and cause the heart rate to speed up and become irregular.
· Exercise regularly. Aerobic activities such as cycling, jogging, walking and swimming are recommended.
· Maintain your ideal weight by eating a balance and healthy diet
· Eliminate stress. Anxiety is one of the common causes of palpitations.
· Avoid medications that may trigger atrial fibrillation. Some medications that may cause fibrillation are appetite suppressants, cough and cold medications, antidepressants, asthma medications, narcolepsy medications and thyroid medications.
· Do not take diet pills. Diet pills that contain phenylpropanolamine or PPA can cause palpitations which may lead to an atrial condition.
· Take antibiotics if they are prescribed by your doctor to reduce your risk of developing endocarditis or heart infection.
· Get enough sleep at night. During sleep, your body’s need for oxygen-rich blood is reduced. This will allow your heart to relax its pumping.
· Check your iron. Rapid and erratic heartbeat, as a harbinger of atrial fibrillation, may also indicate iron-deficiency anemia. One of the major functions of your blood is to deliver oxygen to every organ in your body through red blood cells. Oxygen is carried by iron in your red blood cells. If your body lacks iron, your heart beats faster in an effort to send more iron-deficient blood to your organs.

Some studies showed that pharmacologic therapy involving angiotensin receptor blockers, statins, angiotension-converting enzyme inhibitors, calcium channel blockers and aldosterone may play a role in the development and recurrence of atria fibrillation. These drugs interfere with heart’s electrical impulses. However, the use of any of these drugs should be assessed carefully especially if you have other heart problems.
It is never too late to change your lifestyle to avoid developing atrial fibrillation

Atrial Fibrillation Diagnosis: Other Tests

admin — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 10:07:21 +0000

Electrocardiogram, echocardiogram, Holter monitoring and Cardiac Event Monitor are diagnostic procedures and devices that are commonly used to identify atrial fibrillation and its underlying causes.
Here are other tests and procedures that can be done to identify this most common arrhythmia:
· Screening – this procedure to identify atrial fibrillation involves routine pulse checks during a routine visit to your physician. Some studies showed that the annual rate of atrial fibrillation detection in older patients had improved from 1.04 percent to 1.63 percent by just undergoing a routine medical screening.
· Routine medical visit – this is not a reliable way to identify atrial fibrillation probably because the pulse is not being checked regularly or carefully.
· Minimal evaluation – this procedure is generally done on all patients with atrial fibrillation. The goal of this procedure is to determine the best treatment option for you. Further studies may be requested by your physician if the results of the evaluation warrant it.
· History and physical examination – your history of atrial fibrillation episodes is important in this procedure. Your physician should be able to determine during the examination if you have an asymptomatic or chronic type of atrial arrhythmias.
· Routine blood test – because there is a big possibility that this atrial condition is a result of other various health problems, it is recommended that you undergo routine tests to check the balance of electrolytes in your body, renal function, blood count and thyroid-stimulating hormone. Cardiac troponins may be tested if the condition is associated with chest pain.
· Chest X-ray – this is only performed if a pulmonary or cardiac condition is the suspected cause of your rapid and irregular heart beat or shortness of breath.
· Extended evaluation – this procedure is only performed if your physician noted some abnormalities in the results from your minimal evaluation, if there is a suggested change in the cause of atrial fibrillation or if further studies may change the course of treatment.
· Exercise stress test – this procedure will evaluate the response of your heart rate to physical stress and determine if your shortness of breath is due to excessive antrioventricular node blocking agents.
· Cox-Maze procedure – involves surgery for the treatment of chronic atrial fibrillation. Its goal is to restore the normal rhythm of your heart by disrupting the conduction of abnormal electrical impules through surgery. This invasive procedure is also designed to prevent strokes and blood clots and control heart fibrillation.

Atrial Fibrillation Diagnosis: Echocardiogram

admin — Sat, 18 Jul 2009 10:06:37 +0000

An echocardiogram a noninvasive test for atrial fibrillation, is performed only when the physician needs more data to determine causes of your rapid and irregular heart rate. An echocardiogram can be useful and effective in identifying heart problems that may cause atrial fibrillation.
Test Description:
An echocardiogram involves placing a probe that gives off sound waves on your chest. This probe also reads the sound waves that bounce from your heart. The sound waves are then converted by a machine into a video. Using this video, your physician will be able to see what causes the rapid and irregular beating of your heart which is a precursor for an atrial condition.
An echocardiographic imaging of your heart can help your physician assess your cardiac chamber function and sizes, the valvular function and pericardium. The information that your physician can get from this procedure may help him in identifying the etiology of atrial fibrillation.
The procedure can also help your physician determine if you are at risk for thromboembolic complications of atrial fibrillation.
Transesophageal Echocardiogram (TEE) for Atrial Fibrillation:
This special type of echocardiogram is done when your physician wants to see the back of your heart. This minimally invasive procedure is done only when your physician wants to have a clearer picture of the heart which is sometimes not provided by a standard echocardiogram. The procedure involves inserting a probe down to your esophagus. The esophagus is located right behind the heart and serves as a passageway that connects the mouth and the stomach.
As this procedure is used to get a clear view of areas of the heart that are not usually seen in a standard echocardiogram, TEE is an effective way to identify an arrhythmia and its underlying causes.
Studies conducted by researchers at the Stroke Prevention in Atrial Fibrillation (SPAF) showed that TEE is useful in predicting thromboembolism. It is advisable then that if you are showing the first episode of atrial fibrillation, you undergo a TEE evaluation of your left ventricular systolic function, left atrial size and mitral valve function and morphology.
Because of its recognized clinical value, the use of TEE has increased, particularly in detecting sources of embolism and guiding direct current conversion.
In summary, echocardiography is one of the effective tests to identify atrial fibrillation, the most common arrhythmia encountered in clinical practice. Not only echocardiography plays an important role in assessing the fibrillation problems, it is also useful in guiding the proper course of management of atrial fibrillation.