Posted by John Behle on May 11, 2001 at 04:20:53:
In Reply to: Boise Maze posted by Rob Johnson on May 11, 2001 at 00:16:28:
Just before my MAZE a Cardiologist jumped all over me when I suggested I was going to have it done. He said there are so many other things we could try first like Ablating the AV node (does little or nothing for AF), putting in a pacemaker (same - little or nothing).
He really tried to make me feel stupid and irresponsible for considering it - until - he listened to my heart sounds and detected Congestive Heart Failure and then did an Echo to find the ejection fraction at 20%. He quit his antics then.
Cardiologists seem to know so little about the MAZE and consider it a "drastic" step.
To me, going another year with the AF would be a drastic step - and likely fatal.