Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Catheter ablation - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia



Catheter ablation - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia: "Catheter ablation is an invasive procedure used to remove a faulty electrical pathway from the hearts of those who are prone to developing cardiac arrhythmias such as atrial fibrillation, atrial flutter, supraventricular tachycardias (SVT) and Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome.
It involves advancing several flexible catheters into the patient's blood vessels, usually either in the femoral vein, internal jugular vein, or subclavian vein. The catheters are then advanced towards the heart and high-frequency electrical impulses are used to induce the arrhythmia, and then ablate (destroy) the abnormal tissue that is causing it.
Catheter ablation is usually performed by an electrophysiologist (a specially trained cardiologist) in a cath lab.
Catheter ablation of most arrhythmias has an extremely high success rate.[citation needed] For SVT, WPW, and atrial flutter, the success rates are 95-98%.[citation needed] For automatic atrial tachycardias, the success rates are 70-90%.[citation needed] The potential complications include bleeding, blood clots, pericardial tamponade, and heart block, but these risks are very low, ranging from 0.5-3%.
Jack's abnormal tissue is located right posterior septal (back of the right side of his heart). Kind of a tricky spot, but Dr. Dick is confident and very reassuring.

Jack's heart



I wanted to take a moment to share recent developments from our latest trip to U of M's Mott Children's Hospital's Pediatric Cardiology clinic with Jack. Jack was born with a rare congenital heart disorder, known as Wolff Parkinson White Syndrome. Below gives a brief explanation:

Wolff Parkinson White Syndrome : University of Michigan Health System: "Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome is a rare congenital heart disorder involving irregularities in the electrical system of the heart. In individuals with WPW syndrome, an abnormal alternate electrical pathway (accessory pathway), exists between the atrium and the ventricle, resulting in abnormal heartbeat rhythms (arrhythmias) and faster than normal heartbeats (tachycardia).

The normal heart has four chambers. The two upper chambers are the atria and the two lower chambers are the ventricles. Within the right atrium of a normal heart is a natural pacemaker that initiates and controls the heartbeat. The electrical stimulus travels from the pacemaker (sinoatrial or SA node) to the ventricles along a specific pathway consisting of conducting tissue and known as the AV (atrioventricular) node. The extra electrical pathway in individuals with WPW syndrome bypasses the normal route and causes the ventricles to beat earlier than normal (preexcitation) and can allow electrical impulses to be conducted in both directions (i.e., from the atria to the ventricles and from the ventricles to the atria)."


With the exception of the first 15 days of Jack's life, he has been for the most part, asymptomatic. Since then, he has only had a few instances of SVT (Supraventricular Tachycardia), where his heart races uncontrollably. We've known that Jack will most likely need a catheter ablation to eliminate the WPW and risks associated, completely. Dr. MacDonald Dick has been our cardiologist for seven years now, and annually we have met with him to hear his thoughts on Jack's candidacy for this procedure. Each year Dr. Dick has told us that yes, Jack has WPW, but no, the procedure is not necessary. Yet.

Yesterday at Jack's appointment in Ann Arbor, I was told that Jack weighs enough and is now a good candidate for the catheter procedure. Tim and I have been in agreement, and I shared with the medical staff, that I feel as though we are just waiting for another episode of SVT to occur, and I don't want to wait anymore. I would prefer that Jack have the procedure so he can live a normal, active life, with no fear of passing out, dizziness, or God forbid, cardiac arrest. I was so fortunate to see a friendly face yesterday at the clinic, Brynn Dechert! She is an LPN who works closely with Dr. Dick in scheduling the ablations, and although she will be on maternity leave in June, it was so nice to see her yesterday. We went through middle school together and spent many summers together at Interlochen Arts Camp.

So this June, after school gets out, our brave little man is heading to U of M to fix his heart! He will likely only spend one day in the hospital, and have little or no scarring, as the catheters will be enter through his nose, armpit, and groin. I will include info in the next post on the procedure.
Nervous? A little, but I am mostly feeling relief in knowing that we will finally be able to put this 7 year chapter behind us. After we returned home yesterday, and I had a moment to process things, I started thinking about the 10 day nightmare we went through in 2002, when we rushed Jack to the ER because his lips were turning blue and his heart rate was over 300 bpm, and I became overwhelmed with emotion. That was the most difficult, scary time of my life, and I am very much looking forward to the day when I can send Jack off to a soccer or baseball game and not worry about a racing heart, but rather, the score of the game.






Wednesday, March 3, 2010

Moving Right Along...

Thanks to the help of two guys who know how to tile and drywall, our bathroom project is moving right along. Tim and I did all of the demo work and painting, but needed a hand with the details... you know, like taking a toilet off the phalange, and laying tile and drywall. Here's where we're at so far!
The saw...
Avocado. The previous back splash color.


Kate just wanted to help.


Demo man. He ripped his favorite pants, and considered cut off short-shorts.



Pocket door is gone, the wall is on its way!



Bye bye wall!





New paint and flooring. Vanity, mirror, sinks, fixtures and lighting still to come!





The shiny new floors.


Our finished mantle.