Keep up on your a-fib to prevent a stroke

The storm brewing in over 2.2 million Americans is scary. The lightning bolts that are associated with this storm are tiny little clots that can cause a stroke. This irregular heart beat is the most common form among the US- atrial fibrillation.

In fact, as many as one in every five strokes in America are related to atrial fibrillation, which is also called AF. That’s more than 150,000 strokes a year. People with AF have a stroke risk that’s up to six times higher than the risk for other people their age — and if they have other health conditions such as diabetes or heart disease, their stroke risk is even higher.

Medications and treatments such as ablation are key in treating and controlling a-fib. There is many meds out there and blood thinners to chose from. There are new up and coming procedures being tested and used in very select areas.

Another technology… is an experimental treatment that uses a special balloon-camera to see inside the heart, and a tiny laser to “zap” heart muscle tissue with the same goal as the RF ablation technique: to create tiny scars that will prevent irregular electrical impulses from getting through.

Any way you look at it- it is ever so important to keep your blood tinned and a-fib in control as well as up o date on your cardiologist appointments. And as always, if your heart is racing and you are feeling dizzy, nauseous or faint, call 911!

via University of Michigan