Aa
Aa
A
A
A
Close
Avatar universal

Return To Work After Ablation Question

Hi all. Please can anyone help me with this question? I had a cardiac ablation 11 days ago for Focal Atrial Tachycardia. How long would I expect to be off sick from work after the ablation? (I live in the UK).

My Dr's said to have a few weeks off to recover & build up my level of activity again. But how many weeks is a few?Due to my arrhythmia symptoms I had been unable to do anything much for 2 months before the ablation. So while I can now do things at home again, & have started going out for a half hour walk a day, I don't feel I can run around at work again yet!

I'm asking because my employer has asked me to see Occupational Health on Wednesday next week (15 days post ablation)....they want me to return to work. But is it too soon? I don't want to run into problems by going back too soon.

Any ideas? How long were you off work after your ablation? I would really appreciate any help.

Thanks
JaneML93
4 Responses
Sort by: Helpful Oldest Newest
Avatar universal
I guess we all react in different ways! I had a cardiac ablation on the 1st of October and apparentley the procedure was successful , 5 ventricukar ablations and 2 atrial. Well I spent the first 2 weeks in bed, feeling exsausted ,light headed and then slowly slowly started to get stronger! On the 7th of November my sick note was ended and honestly I didn't feel strong enough to go back to work! I am a cook for a school so you can imagine what means to work constantly under pressure, steams, vapors , hot ovens and specially serving standing by the Bain  marie.... My family and friends "forced me" to go back to the doctors and ask for little bit more time off but this wasn't granted ! The doct told me that he thought I could of gone back to work!
I'm starting just now to feel better and it's after a month and 20 days so Jane it's really up to the person and I think also it depends on how unwell were you previously the operation !
Good luck to you ....oh I forgot, I didn't have any tachicardia since the operation so....fingers x
Helpful - 0
187666 tn?1331173345
Good morning - I have a few different types of arrhythmias going on in there so it's difficult to clean up all the active spots. The first time I went in, my EP thought he was going to find the area that was causing my PSVT. But he was in for a few surprises. He said it was like the 4th of July in there (our Independence Day where we fire off a lot of fireworks). Plus they found some atrial flutter which was a surprise.

The first time he thought the atrial tachy was controlled. But it did come back. The second time in, he zapped and mapped and zapped some more but knew he didn't get it. The third time he did his best to improve the arrhythmias. And he did. I still get the paroxysmal atrial tachy but it doesn't last long. Usually less than a minute, only rarely up to 15 minutes. That's a big improvement for me. The ectopics (PAC's and PVC's) hiccup throughout the day but I'm used to them. No worse than a twitching eyelid. LOL

I don't know how often an arrhythmia will come back after an ablation because the folks that were "healed" have no need to visit a board like this. I know of a young girl at church  that had hers done and she's doing just fine. Now her Mom is considering having hers done too.

For me, the arrhythmias stayed with me but were just different. I'm content with that.
Helpful - 0
Avatar universal
Hi. Thank you so much for your reply to my question,I feel much better now...knowing that I should be ok after 2 weeks. I work in a NHS hospital (UK) & push patients in wheelchairs & transfer between trolleys, as well as do lots of reception work...so I should be ok. I've been getting lots of aggro from my employer since I was diagnosed 18 months ago & wasn't sure if they were trying to push me back too soon. I feel a lot better after reading your reply, thanks.

Can I ask you about your ablations please? You said you had 3. Did your first 2 fail or did they work initially? It's all new to me, especially as I was originally diagnosed with IST & was facing a sinus node modification & possible pacemaker. I'd read up on everything I could about that procedure...then when my EP did the EP study he actually found I had focal atrial tachycardia coming from near the sinus node. So he has just done an ablation in the atrium. It took 5 hours mind you! But I was just SO overjoyed when I was in recovery & my EP told me he had found this & done the ablation, & I had a very low pacemaker risk. I didn't really want my sinus node ablated but I was prepared for it if that was his only option.

Since the ablation & change of diagnosis, I'm reading up everything I can on focal atrial tachycardia. Is it different to paroxysmal atrial tachy?

I know it can take 3-6 months for the heart to heal after the ablation, & I'm seeing my EP in 3 months. I've had no arrhythmia symptoms since the ablation(apart from a few ectopics & 1 episode of tachy a few days after), but could they come back? I've read about people feeling great for a number of weeks, then suddenly their symptoms come back. Did that happen to you? I hope you don't mind me asking.

You are very knowledgable about all this, thank you so much for your help.

Best wishes
JaneML93
Helpful - 0
187666 tn?1331173345
I'm not sure how your ablation differed from mine. I've had 3 ablations and was easily back to work within one week. And my job (working with wildlife) can be physically demanding. After my second ablation (the longest at 7 hours) I did feel less energetic for a couple of weeks but I was fully mobile. My ablations were done to treat Paroxysmal atrial tachycardia and atrial flutter.

Example of the physical demands of my job: climbing ladders, chasing after eagles, geese, raccoons,  lifting heavy items up to 50 lbs: food sacks, beavers, cages, on my feet for 8 - 10 hours a day. Those are just some of the things I have to do. And I did once the small incisions in the groin healed.
Helpful - 0
Have an Answer?

You are reading content posted in the Heart Disease Community

Top Heart Disease Answerers
159619 tn?1707018272
Salt Lake City, UT
11548417 tn?1506080564
Netherlands
Learn About Top Answerers
Didn't find the answer you were looking for?
Ask a question
Popular Resources
Is a low-fat diet really that heart healthy after all? James D. Nicolantonio, PharmD, urges us to reconsider decades-long dietary guidelines.
Can depression and anxiety cause heart disease? Get the facts in this Missouri Medicine report.
Fish oil, folic acid, vitamin C. Find out if these supplements are heart-healthy or overhyped.
Learn what happens before, during and after a heart attack occurs.
What are the pros and cons of taking fish oil for heart health? Find out in this article from Missouri Medicine.
How to lower your heart attack risk.