coumadin and cardioversions

[.mary]

How long should a person be on coumadin before having a cardioversion and is there any certain number of cardioversions a person can have?  Do cardioversions damage the heart in any way.

[bert7up]

A related discussion, crdioversion was started.

[Susan]

My husband was diagnosed with IDCM in January of 2000.  His ejection fraction was around 25-30% by the echo.  He had a persistant cough and a bit of shortness of breath.  He had fluid in his lungs at the time so I guess this was CHF also.  After another echo in april there was not much improvement in his left side of his heart or his ejection fraction but the doctor said that the right side of his heart was back to normal.  His Doctor said that this was not uncommon.  Just after a week of taking 40mg Zestril, 25mg Speronolactone, and 20mg Furosemide, he felt great, and back to normal.  He has been off the Furosemide now for a month and a half and is currently on coreg 25mg once a day will be increasing it to 25mg twice a day in another week.  They do think it might have been a vires that caused all this and am wondering if they should have ordered a heart cath by now?  He has only had the two Echo's.  I forgot to tell you that his heart was inlarged also.  I also have read that a third of people with this condition will get better and a third stay the same and a third will die or need transplant.  When they say get better, does that mean recover and will be ok?  Is that possible with a person who has experienced CHF?  I hear of many people who recover and some that have had CHF but just want to ask anyway.  My husband is going to be 32 very soon and does not smoke and is not over weight.  He is active and works a full time job.  One would never believe that he had anything wrong with him, including himself!  I have also heard that some people will have normal lifespans with this condition, is this true?
Thank you for your time, and would greatly appreciate your answer!!

[Ram Kalaga]

Actually, I am looking for information on complications from using Coumadin.

A friend of mine underwent a prosthetic heart valve surgery (Bjork-Shiley) about 20 years ago and is on regular Coumadin ever since. She is 43 years old and is otehrwise healthy without any problems.

She's planning to get married and have a family. My questions are:
1. Does Coumadin affect the chances of her becoming pregnant?
2. If she were to carry a successful pregnancy, what are the recommendations vis-a-vis Coumadin?
3. Is pregnancy dangerous for a person like her?

I will appreciate if anyone can give me advice on these things.
Thanks.

-- RK

[CCF CARDIO MD JMF]

Dear mary,

In general we wait 4-6 weeks for anticoagulation prior to cardioversion.  There is no limit to the number of cardioversions that a person may have and they do not damage the heart in any way.