Fast heart rate after PVI ablation

[mml78]

Hi all!  For all of you who have had the pulmonary vein isolation ablation, can you tell me if you experienced a fast heart rate afterwards?  My pulse has been pretty steady, but always around 105, even lying in bed.  I had the ablation on Tuesday the 29th so it's only been a few days.  My doctor isn't worried since I have some irritation around my heart that's been causing chest discomfort, which he says should clear up in a week.  Did anyone else experience this?  Did you find anything that helped?  I'm just really unconfortable right now with my heart rate this fast.  Thanks for any help or encouragement!

[Loisemitch]

I had my ablation on 9/24.  No afib except for maybe a minute or so twice.  Heart rate varies.  At first was 90's and 100's.  Now more like 80's and 90's.  I have gotten as low as 73.  I take 25 mg of atenolol (beta blocker) once a day.  Had been on it twice a day; but heart rate got pretty low for very brief periods (maybe 40's).  Day after I changed dose to once a day, hr was 130 in the morning for a very short time.  Seems to be getting more stable.  Before procedure hr was 60's and 70's.  It's only been 3 weeks; so I think I am doing well.  I'm sure you will stabilize soon too.

[JonF]

I stopped the Coumadin a few days before my last PVI (when I had to start injecting Lovenox into my stomach). That was lots of fun too!

[mml78]

My resting rate was between 75 and 80 before the procedure.  I just got back from my EP's office and he is puzzled by the fast rate.  I have tried everything from meditation to putting ice packs on my body to bring it down and nothing works.  He told me I could take my digoxin or a beta blocker if I need some relief, but so far I haven't taken anything.  It's funny because the first time I went to see my doc after the procedure, my pulse was in sinus rhythm at 100bpm.  Today, it was sinus tachycardia with a rate of 113.  So it seems to be getting faster.  Agh!  So annoying.  By the way, do you take coumadin?  I was thinking the fast rate might have something to do with that, but my EP said no, probably not.  Aren't heart issues awesome??  

[JonF]

You're very welcome. My resting heart rate is usually somewhere between 90bmp and 100bpm. Do you recall what your resting rate was before the PVI?

[mml78]

Thanks for the response.  I don't think the fast heartrate is anxiety-related, since my pulse was in the hundreds after the surgery while I was still sedated.  (My husband watched the monitor while I slept.)  So I'm thinking it has something to do with my heart being irritated right now.  I certainly hope so because I don't want this to be my normal rate - it's really uncomfortable.  I'm sorry your first ablation didn't work out.  I think the second ones have a better success rate, right?  So far, I haven't gone into a-fib but I have experienced some PAC's.  I'm hoping that's the extent of it.

I'll cross my fingers for you on your next procedure.  Good luck and again, thanks for the reply!

[JonF]

I had a PVI close to two years ago. My EP warned me ahead of time that I would likely go in and out of AFib and SVT for up to six months after the procedure while the ablated tissue heals and scars. My PVI was unsuccessful, and I'll be having another one in a few months.

Keep in mind that you're also mentally hyper-sensitive to your heart right now because you're constantly thinking about it. That can cause you to stress out a little, which can in turn, elevate your heart rate. The best advice if to take it easy.