a-Fib & coumadin

Posted By marcia on February 11, 1999 at 13:17:22:







My 76 yr old mother had a successful cardioversion for A-Fib a couple years ago and with meds, has not had another A-Fib. She's been on coumadin even before the cardioversions and the dosage is always needing to be increased. My question is why does she need to take coumadin if her heart rythm is normal. Her EKG's are good; heart is strong and not enlarged. All arteries are clear. She does have high blood pressure 140/90 and takes medication. Her cholesterol is high 260.  In general, she is not doing that well on the coumadin because she is getting alot of large vein  blowouts in her legs. We would like to get her off this drug, but her general physician says do. She hasn't seen a cardiologist for over 3 years and I'm wondering if we should have her reassessed.
Thanks for any comments.