Posted by Jack Drum on October 19, 2001 at 09:16:06:
In Reply to: My husband's a-fib update since 9-3-01 message posted posted by Jackie Robinson on October 19, 2001 at 00:03:49:
Jackie the only thing I can say about your electrophysiologist is, he is very uninformed, or he is looking out only for his bottom line. I would spend a lot of time on the WWW looking up information on how much the Maze Procedure is utilized, and the success rate from the medical centers that use it. You will have to decide from the information you dig up if you will live with the AF, medication and continued visits to the electrophysiologist, or to find another cardiologist who is better informed and possibly have a life free of AF, and medication.
The Maze is being performed in most all countries around the world, and is gaining more acceptance as a cure for AF all the time. There has been thousands of Maze surgeries done instead of a few.
Jackie, I know you have read a lot of post from the board, and all the people here are not trying to sell the maze for any gain of their own. For the most part they are a bunch of ex-fibbers who want to pass on their own experiences on the maze and how it has affected them. Several of them heard many of the same things from their doctors as you have.
There is a lot of information in the Articles and Studies at the top of the Maze page, and you can contact the different Medical facilities that do the Maze, such as Cleveland Clinic, OSU Medical Center in Columbus, Mayo Clinics, and the surgeons listed in the Maze Surgeons list. I would take time to run down the information, but well worth it to feel at ease in what ever decision you make.
For most of the people here, you will hear that it was nearly a life saver, and they would do it again if necessary.
I would also want to be well informed about the ablation procedure before I considered it. I think you will find that the 70% cure rate is inflated from the actual cure rate. Many people go through more than 1 ablations and still have AF problems.
Best wishes and prayers for you and your husband.