• Artial Fibrillation
    Ways to treat Atrial Fibrillation

    Arterial Fibrillation is a condition that is characterized by increase in the heart beat and alteration in its rhythmic functioning. Although it might be symptom-less in mild cases, it is normally bothering when the condition progresses to higher levels. Signs like chest pains, palpitations, feeling lightheaded, and fatigue are very common. When it increases in severity, blood supply to the brain might be altered, thereby leading to a stroke.

    Effective treatment of AFib
    The heart rhythm is normally caused by thickening of the blood, making the heart to increase its pumping force for the blood to get out of the heart efficiently. Your doctor may follow any of these treatments depending on your condition.
    Anticoagulants – These are drugs that will help prevent and breakdown the clots that are normally formed in the blood. These clots are the ones that impair blood circulation to the brain; especially if they clog the blood vessels to the head. It is the first line treatment for AFib stroke that is normally used in most of the hospitals. Warfarin is the main drug of choice that people are usually given.
    Antiplatelet – Platelets are the fine particles that increase the density of blood. They take part in blood clotting when one is cut by forming a plug that normally turns into a scar. To ensure that your blood returns back to normal, these drugs will reduce the production of platelets, thereby letting you have a perfect blood density that will flow perfectly in the blood vessels. These drugs should not be taken for long because you could develop coagulopathies, which are not normally good. Aspirin is the widely used drug in this category.
    Thrombolytic drugs – These drugs are normally not used for long in AFib treatment. They are used in acute cases by care centers when people want to breakdown the clots so as to save life. They work well and people are put on other blood thinning elements when they recover fully from the clots. Thrombolytic agents are not good for people, if they are used for long.

    The bottom line
    Treatment of stroke is not a one-day thing. Always ensure that you have a checkup quickly the moment you experience some symptoms. If you wait, the condition might worsen and you could end up suffering for long.

  • Artial Fibrillation
    Treatment options for Atrial Fibrillation

    Atrial Fibrillation is a condition is which the heat beats in an arrhythmic pattern i.e. patients have a quivering or fluttering sensation in the heart. Atrial Fibrillation is also commonly called AFib or AF. Almost 27 percent of Americans suffer from this condition and almost twenty percent of the cases of stroke are due to AFib. This condition is mainly caused due to thickening of blood i.e. increase in the blood pressure which in turn can be caused due to high levels of cholesterol or high levels of sugar in the blood.

    AFib treatments for individuals depend on how long the individual has had AFib, how severe the symptoms are and the basic cause of AFib. Atrial Fibrillation drugs and other treatments basically target to reset the rhythm of the heart beat or control the levels of blood clot. Also, the treatment prescribed by the doctor will offer depends on other factors too. Other factors include other diseases or disorders, previous medication record, whether the patient will be able to consume the Atrial Fibrillation drugs to reset the heart beat or not, etc.

    Resetting the heart beat- The ideal way to treat AFib is to correct the heart rhythm. This can be done using a procedure called Cardioversion. Cardioversion can be conducted in two kinds of procedures.

    Electrical Cardioversion – This procedure is brief and involves delivering an electric shock to the heart through paddles placed on the chest. The shock momentarily stops the electrical activity of the heart. It is hoped that when the heart resumes again, the rhythm will be back to normal.

    Cardioversion with drugs – In this form of Cardioversion, AFib drugs called anti-arrhythmics are provided to the patient to help the heart get back to its normal rhythm. The doctor refers intravenous or oral Atrial fibrillation medications based on the condition of the patient’s heart. This process is carried out in the hospital with continuous monitoring of the heart rhythm.
    Before any Cardioversion treatment is carried out, blood thinning medications are usually given for several weeks in order to reduce risks of blood clots.

    Maintaining normal rhythm of the heart- After the Cardioversion treatments, the doctor prescribes anti-arrhythmic medications. This is done so that atrial fibrillation episodes in the future can be avoided. These drugs may have certain side effects like fatigue, nausea or dizziness. However, even with medication, there always remains a chance of another AFib episode. There are also medications available for AFib stroke treatments.

    Heart rate control – Control of heart rate can be achieved with various kinds of medications. For example, medication may be able to control heart rate at rest. However, it might not work that well during activity. So, a lot of patients sometimes require alternative or additional medications like beta blockers or calcium channel blockers. However, beta blockers may cause severe side effects like low blood pressure and worsening of heart condition; the same can occur for calcium beta blockers.