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Living With - Atrial Fibrillation - Living With

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If you have been diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, it is important that you continue your treatment. Follow-up care can help your doctor check your condition and talk to you about how to prevent repeat events and what to do in an emergency. Sometimes, atrial fibrillation may go back to a normal heart rhythm without treatment.

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\n Receive routine follow-up care \n
- Atrial Fibrillation - Living With

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How often you need to see your doctor for follow-up care will depend on your symptoms and treatment.

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  • Keep all your medical appointments. Bring a list of all the medicines you are taking to every doctor and emergency room visit. This will help your doctor know exactly what medicines you are taking.
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  • Take your medicines as prescribed. If you are taking medicines to treat your atrial fibrillation, your doctor will monitor their effects, including the dose, your body\u2019s electrolyte levels, and the medicines\u2019 effect on other organs.
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  • Tell your doctor if your medicines are causing side effects, if your symptoms are getting worse, or if you have new symptoms.
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  • Ask your doctor about physical activity, weight control, and alcohol use. Find out what steps you can take to manage your condition. If you use illegal drugs, ask your doctor for help stopping.
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  • Check with your doctor before taking over-the-counter medicines, nutritional supplements, or cold and allergy medicines. Some of these products can trigger rapid heart rhythms or interact poorly with other medicines. In addition, the effect of blood thinners can be enhanced by medicines to treat arrhythmia.
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  • If you have had an ablation, your doctor will want to see you regularly for three months to check on the healing process, to check for the reappearance of atrial fibrillation events, and to make adjustments to blood thinning medicines as needed. You will continue to take blood thinners for several months and maybe much longer. Report any lasting pain, for example at the site, or any other signs of a complication. Your doctor will want to see you at least once a year after the initial follow-up period.
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  • If you are taking warfarin, it is important to monitor the dose by measuring how quickly your blood clots. Your doctor will do blood tests every week at first, then monthly once the level has stabilized. You may be able to do this yourself at home. You will need to avoid certain other medicines and watch what you eat. Some foods, such as leafy green vegetables, may interfere with warfarin.
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Return to Treatment to review possible treatment options for your atrial fibrillation.

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\n Monitor your condition \n
- Atrial Fibrillation - Living With

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Regular visits to the clinic give your doctor a chance to see how well medicines are controlling your atrial fibrillation, monitor your ongoing risks of clotting or bleeding, and see how well you are healing from any procedures. Your doctor may also ask you to wear a heart rhythm monitor and send data in between visits to see how well your treatment is working and to detect any repeat events.

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  • Electrocardiogram (EKG). Regular EKG monitoring can help your doctor detect a repeat atrial fibrillation event or assess your response to changes in dose or medicine, or to ending treatment with medicines. Your doctor may record an EKG during your regular visits or recommend a portable monitor. A band that can record a 30-second EKG has also been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
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  • Stress tests or a six-minute walking test can help your doctor see whether your medicine prevents atrial fibrillation while you are doing typical everyday activities.
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  • Blood tests to check the effect of certain heart rhythm medicines on your thyroid, kidneys, or liver. The blood thinner warfarin also requires regular testing to make sure the dose is correct. In some cases, your doctor may talk to you about devices available for monitoring your blood thinning medicines at home. Blood thinners can be stopped or adjusted if you are going into surgery.
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\n Prevent repeat atrial fibrillation \n
- Atrial Fibrillation - Living With

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To help prevent a repeat episode of atrial fibrillation, your doctor may recommend the following:

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  • Medicine that you can take at home as needed to correct your heart rhythm. Before giving you this medicine, the doctor will ask you to take a dose and try to trigger an event to see if the medicine prevents it effectively. You can take this medicine if you start feeling symptoms of atrial fibrillation.
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  • Treatment for an underlying condition, such as sleep apnea, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
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  • Heart-healthy lifestyle changes, including aiming for a healthy weight. Combining weight loss with physical activity and the management of other risk factors, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, alcohol use, and smoking, can improve symptoms more than weight loss alone.
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\n Learn the warning signs of serious complications and have a plan \n
- Atrial Fibrillation - Living With

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Atrial fibrillation can lead to serious complications such as sudden cardiac arrest and stroke. Risks of treatment with blood thinners include severe bleeding in the brain. If you suspect any of the following in you or someone else, call 9-1-1 immediately:

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  • Bleeding in the brain, digestive system, or urinary tract. This can happen if you take a dose of blood-thinning medicines that is too high. Signs and symptoms may include bright red vomit; bright red blood in your stool or black, tarry stools; blood in your urine; severe pain in the abdomen or head; sudden, severe changes in your vision or ability to move your arms or legs; or memory loss. A lot of bleeding after a fall or injury, or easy bruising or bleeding, may mean that your blood is too thin. Excessive bleeding is bleeding that will not stop after you apply pressure to a wound for 10 minutes. Call your doctor right away if you have any of these signs.
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  • Heart attack. Signs of heart attack include mild or severe chest pain or discomfort in the center of the chest or upper abdomen that lasts for more than a few minutes or goes away and comes back. It can feel like pressure, squeezing, fullness, heartburn, or indigestion. There may also be pain down the left arm. Women may also have chest pain and pain down the left arm, but they are more likely to have less typical symptoms, such as shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, unusual tiredness, and pain in the back, shoulders, or jaw. Read more about the signs and symptoms of a heart attack.
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  • Stroke. If you think someone may be having a stroke, act F.A.S.T. and do the following simple test:

    F\u2014Face: Ask the person to smile. Does one side of the face droop?

    A\u2014Arms: Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward?

    S\u2014Speech: Ask the person to repeat a simple phrase. Is their speech slurred or strange?

    T\u2014Time: If you observe any of these signs, call 9-1-1 immediately. Every minute matters.

    Read more about the signs and symptoms of a stroke.

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  • Sudden cardiac arrest. Usually, the first sign of sudden cardiac arrest is fainting. At the same time, no heartbeat can be felt. Some people may have a racing heartbeat or feel dizzy or light-headed just before they faint. Within an hour before cardiac arrest, some people have chest pain, shortness of breath, nausea, or vomiting. Call 9-1-1 right away if someone has signs or symptoms of sudden cardiac arrest. Look for a defibrillator nearby and follow the instructions.
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Syndicated Content Details:
Source URL: https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/subscribe/3839
Source Agency: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Captured Date: 2018-09-27 13:47:00.0
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