What to expect post-op SVT ablation surgery

[kybuddha]

OK, I am gettin ready to have ablation surgery for SVT. What should I expect post-op? I am seriously freaking out about this. I have never had SVT until 9 months ago when I took Sudafed. My doctor says that I was born with SVT and that the Sudafed just triggered it. Does anyone have any words of wisdom?

[ireneo]

I've had 3 ablations for my arrhythmias. I think the worst part was before - take off all my clothes, get an IV put in. The rest wasn't too bad. After it's done you have to lie fairly flat for about 6 hours. That can cause quite a back ache. For some reason the last time I had it done they allowed me to have the head of my bed elevated just a few degrees (there's a limit) and it made all the difference in the world. I did have some bruising and tenderness in the groin area, some fatigue for a couple of days but I was functional around home - not bed-ridden. You're not supposed to lift anything heavy for a short period of time but all in all it wasn't a big deal. Anything specific you're wondering or worrying about?

[vonnie333]

In addition to the rapid heartbeat, I experience chest pain & pressure more frequently in the last few months and wondered if this was normal for an SVT sufferer. I also experience extreme exhaustion especially if its a long event.
I have had them from 2-3 mins right up to 5 hours.
My most recent one was 45 mins and I was severley fatigued for about a week after.
Does anyone else with SVT suffer the same symptoms
Ive been told I have an svt and the best course of action would be ablation.

[ireneo]

I remember having some chest ache when my PSVT went on for a longer period of time (say - 45 mins. at 190 bpm). I felt tired at the time of the tachy but once it popped back to a normal rhythm, I felt fine and ready to go. I've had 3 ablations now and although I still have PSVT it rarely lasts long, at most 15 minutes and rarely goes over 150. The shorter bursts may pop up to 180. My doctor is now trying to get me onto meds which I don't want. She said I'm still having PSVT and am symptomatic. Just because I can feel them doesn't mean I'm debilitated by them. They may slow me down momentarily but that's it. The side effects of the drugs were far worse than any tachy time I've had.

Off track there, just sharing my experience. If you're having SVT for almost 5 hours then I think an ablation might help or even cure that. Even if you just get some improvement (slower rate or shorter time or less frequency) then it would be worth it. Good luck with your decision.

[ddufner]

I was diagnosed with SVT while in hte hospital recovering form a lung operation. That was 10 years ago. Every 2-3 years i have another huge episode that forces me into hte hospital to receive adenosine to try to reset the heart rate. The first few times that has worked. The last 2 times inclusind last night, it hasnt. I have had to be put on the shock pad system. I tactic i guess is supposed to be pretty rare. Now they are looking into surgery to remove some of the nodes that causing a reverberation of hte impluses to and from my heart. Again another tatctic that supposed to be very rare

[Kristin02]

I was just diagnosed with SVT.  I am having an ablation in March.  I am very nervous about it.  I checked into the hospital in December with a heart rate of 250.  I wake up everyday with a fast heart beat and it will start up when I get out of the shower or have caffeine, it only lasts about 10-20 minutes but they say medication will more than likely not help me.  I am hoping this surgery works.

Kristin

[staceyweb]

I didn't know you could have more than one ablation.  I had it about 3 yrs ago & thought all was well but am now beginning to have the SVT feelings again & chest aching.  I used medicine several for several years before & it wasn't so bad but I had SVTs at least 2-3 times a year, an hour each time so it was not a good quality of life.  

[sweeet_tea]

O.K. reading everything ya'll have had to say, I am less afraid and more on track to get my SVT fixed. I am 34 and have been having problems a few times a year since I was 18. Only in the past 5 years it has rapidly increased. Now my SVT occures about once a month with a bpm of about 195-210. I am a large woman and thats what scares me about the surgery. I do have one question though, do they put you asleep for the surgery? or are you awake?
thanks in advance...

[Sweetwaterguy]

   I had an ablation in December 06 for a fib.  It was more of an elective procedure for me than necessary.  My a fib was fairly well controlled with medication, but I just wanted the chance to be free of the a fib altogether.
   I was admitted to the hospital the day before the procedure.  I had a lot of outward bravado about the procedure, but inwardly was very apprehensive.  Laying in the hospital bed the night before, I thought often, "Oh *****, what have I gotten myself into?"
   I was OK though when the time actually came and they wheeled me into the cath lab.  My ablation was done under a general anesthetic, so I just went to sleep, woke up and it was done.  The biggest inconvenience was having a catheter for the day I was in the hospital being monitored and waiting for entry sites to heal.   I felt fine, very minimal discomfort, and was released the next day.  For about six weeks, I had some sensation in my chest--likely from the healing that was taking place.  But there were only minor restrictions on my activity.  
  Looking back, it really was a huge and amazing event, especially thinking of the level of technology involved.  Yet from a patients view,  it seemed no more difficult than going to the dentist for a filling.  
   In summary, it is scary.  Most adventures are.  Just look at it as one of lifes adventures--one with the potential to benefit you for a very long time.  

[jed123]

I am 51 had 3 Ablations last year 2007.I have had A-Fib,Flutter,SVT..Not very good feeling at all.This began about 15 years ago i believe Caffine caused this to happen at a sporting event."SVT 220" Went to Hosp. it stopped about 30 min later felt fine..Then only happened about every three years.In feb 2006 happened again.Dr. suggested slowing down on Alcohol I was a Beer drinker) and no caffine. Feb 2007 happened again then about every 3 weeks all summer ..Had 2 std Ablations during summer.then they wanted to do a Pulmonary Vein Ablation..during testing they thought i had blockages so they did a cath and found nothing excessive,,the CTA-A  scan was not correct.finally scheduled me for the PVA..this Ablation is a lot more involved..This procedure was a lot more stressful 5 hours on the Surgery table.Afterwords waiting for the blood to thicken back up before they could pull out the sheaths "4-hours" they use for entry..unconfortable was an under statement.The Dr. was not convinced the procedure did anything as this was new Equipt. with new Software and felt it did not work as planned.I was and still worried about that statement.Felt week all year..about 3 weeks after the PVA i thought i was going to die  my Heart was skipping so bad my chest would shake when it would start back up about every 15 sec sometimes..finally straightened up and has been very good for 6 months now..Time will tell..I am not happy about "No Beer" but My family is very behind me on this decision.For my health..But i wonder what they fixed if Alcohol causes it and i dont drink no more..

[serena74]

I am going to have an ablation soon. I have read a lot about it but it seems that every site says something diffrent. Can anyone tell me about how long it will take? How long I will be in the hospital? And about how long I will need to take off of work? Thanks for all the help.

[rosimom]

I just had ablation done on Tuesday of this week. I spent one night in hospital. In my instance because of back issues they did a fancy anesthetic that had me semi out. They were able to find the pathway and ablate it with 95 percent success which is phenomenal. I have a bruise in my groin area and some soreness at my neck where they also went in through the cartoid artery. Was it worth it, absolutely... I was totally debilitated from constant arrythmia and would probably have lost my licence to drive.  Now I have a flutter once in a while and I'm told that might last a month or so before all is well.

[adam_psvt_freak]

ive had this going on 5 years, we thought it was anxiety until we went to the hospital and cought it on an ekg, its been next to impossible to catch it, i go in for and ablation on the 20th of this month (05/20/08) im more excited then nervous, my dr has done over 300 and is averaging about 3 a week and has only had one bad outcome where the patient had to get a pacemaker, but the way i see it is if i need a pacemaker to solve this problem then so be it, i cant live with it anymore, im a 21 y/o male, ive quit drinking and smoking cigarretts for a long time now and its still happening, 3-6 times a week anywhere from 10 to 60 minutes, i will let this room know how it goes and i think this forum is great, email is ***@**** if anyone wants to talk about it.