Second Ablation for AVNRT

[jaspers]

Hi All,

Just wondering if anyone has had any success with a second ablation for AVNRT. I had one 2 years ago, but have since had a sustained SVT attack. My EP says there is only a 30% chance of starting the SVT off and he seems to think I will be wasting thier time...Charming!!

I'm booked for the 20th March and they will be going in just through the groin this time, as he reckons there is always a higher risk with a second ablation than the first.

I had no problems with the first one and I think he is just trying to put me off.

Anyway would be good to know if this has been a success for anyone.

Regards

Tracey

[ireneo]

20 minutes would be annoying. The false starts (short tachy bursts I call them) of 7-8 quick beats are normal after a successful ablation. That's what I live with now plus the PVC's and PAC's. I rarely go over one minute of tachy time.

Still, if the EP is able to go in and clean up the inappropriate signal, I don't know why he's so reluctant. Perhaps it's the time and cost involved. Ablations are not cheap.

Another option is to wait and see if things get worse. If your SVT becomes more frequent, say once a month, then the EP might be more willing to do another ablation. It's a tough call.

[jaspers]

Hi

The attack I had a couple of months ago lasted about 20 mins.

According to the EP when asked if the ablation had been a success and if this was normal, he said this should not have happend for this long, maybe a few fast beats and then it stops, as the pathyway is supposed to have been gone.

Since that attack in Sept, I have been put back on BB, but my heart still every now and then keeps trying to convert in to SVT and I have to keep coughing hard to get it to stop.

It feels like a car backfiring.

The risks he did not go in to and then seemed to back track and say the risks were the same as the first. I seem to think he was just trying to put me off.

I live in the UK and you usually have to go on a wait list, but he just opend his diary and slotted me in.

I just want this boxed off once and for all..


Regards

Tracey

[ireneo]

Kind of curious - how long was your "sustained SVT attack" and I wonder what risks your doctor was thinking about with a 2nd ablation? I've had 3 for PSVT and I'm doing OK.

I can see his point if your SVT is so infrequent that they may not be able to trigger it during the procedure and ablate it.

[Jerry_NJ]

Sorry to say I can't comment on ablation for AVNRT, but I can share a similar situation with AFib.  My EP said he doesn't recommend using ablation because my symptoms are not severe.  In the case of ablation in the left side of the heart for AFib, it seems the risks of complications are high enough he doesn't recommend doing one absent some very troubling symptoms.. which I don't have.  

I take him as the expert, and have not pushed for the ablation.

Your  EP seems to have a similar appraisal for you getting another ablation.