Ablation Helps Flutter, Too

I had ablation of the atrioventricular (AV) node in 2001 that apparently took care of my atrial fibrillation but left me with heart flutter. When I relax in my recliner for a short period of time, I get short of breath and feel very much as I did with atrial fibrillation. When I sit on the chair edge or get up and walk, the feeling goes away. Is there any cure for heart flutter?

I am not certain about what is causing your symptoms. My first thought is that patients with heart failure are often more short of breath lying down than sitting or standing. A check by your cardiologist would resolve that issue. I assume that by “heart flutter” you mean atrial flutter, not just a fluttering feeling in your chest. If you had successful ablation of the AV node, then the atria (top portion of your heart) should not be conducting to the ventricles (bottom chambers), whether you have atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter. If there is conduction, then the atrial flutter can be ablated also. If my comments do not answer your questions, find out more about your condition from your doctor and write in again.

Heartbeat

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Please explain the difference between an electrocardiogram and an echocardiogram. What exactly do these tests tell doctors about the heart?

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My brother-in-law just turned 50 and needs a new heart. We sometimes hear that wealthy people get donor organs quicker than others. Is this true? How long is the usual wait for a new heart?

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Heart Defect Often Causes No Symptoms

I had a stroke in 2003, and a diagnostic test showed a “hole” in my heart with no right-to-left shunt. The shunt didn’t show up on a different kind of test in 2009, either. I came through the stroke fine because I went to the hospital right away and have been on warfarin ever since. My question is: If there’s no shunt, is the hole present?

Surgery Corrects Heart Rhythm

Q: How does the Maze treatment for atrial fibrillation work, and what does it involve? A: The Maze procedure is open heart surgery to eliminate rapid heartbeats. It involves making a series of incisions in the top portion of the heart, the atria. In experienced hands, the procedure is successful in more than 90 percent [...]