JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (Ivanhoe Newswire) – Your heart beats over 100,000 times a day, pumping one and a half gallons of blood every minute. If your heart speeds up, skips beats, or feels like it’s banging against your chest, that could be a sign of atrial fibrillation, or AFib, and it could put you at risk of blood clots, stroke, and heart failure. Now, a new device is helping people with AFib to get their heart back on beat.
The first time Doug Dixon experienced AFib, his heart went into an irregular heartbeat for 17 minutes. He found out when his pacemaker alerted his doctor. When this happened, Doug was at risk for a stroke.
Baptist Health interventional cardiologist, Dr. Ruby Satpathy emphasizes, “People are scared, they would rather die than have a stroke.”
Dr. Satpathy was one of the first to use a new FDA device designed to treat patients who cannot use blood thinners to reduce the risk of stroke. The Amulet LAA Occluder uses a minimally invasive procedure to seal the left atrial appendage.
“Our heart has a little appendix, just like appendix in the belly. It’s a little pouch. That’s where blood gets in there, doesn’t move, forms clot and it goes up next time to brain causes stroke,” Dr. Satpathy explains.
The Amulet is a permanent implant that is placed in a patient’s left atrial appendage, LAA, which is a pouch-like part of the heart. It’s like two doors being locked, preventing blood clots from entering the blood stream.
Dr. Sathpathy adds, “This prevents stroke, this reduces or eliminates bleeding because now you’re not on blood thinner, you’re only on baby aspirin.”
It worked for Doug and he’s now feeling stronger every day.
“They ask me how I’m doing, I say, ‘Well, I’m still vertical.’ So, that’s what counts,” Doug says.
The Amulet does not cure AFib. It greatly reduces the risk of stroke and bleeding. Patients will still need to monitor their a-fib after receiving the amulet.
Contributors to this news report include: Marsha Lewis, Producer; Roque Correa, Videographer & Editor.
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Source:
https://www.heart.org/en/health-topics/atrial-fibrillation/what-is-atrial-fibrillation-afib-or-af
MEDICAL BREAKTHROUGHS
RESEARCH SUMMARY
TOPIC: BACK ON BEAT: AMULET FOR AFib
REPORT: MB #5173
BACKGROUND: Atrial fibrillation (A-fib) is an irregular heartbeat that is often rapid and can cause blood clotting in the heart. It was reported in 2019 to be responsible for 26,535 deaths. A-fib increases someone risk of stroke, heart failure, and other complications regarding the heart. AFib is very highly associated with another heart related problem called arial flutter. While the conditions are different, the treatments and symptoms are very similar. Problems occurring in the hearts structure are the most common causes of AFib. Things such as coronary artery disease, heart attacks, heart defects at birth, heart valve issues, high blood pressures, and lung diseases are all highly correlated to AFib. Blood clots are a dangerous result of atrial fibrillation that can lead to a stroke.
(Source:
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/atrial-fibrillation/symptoms-causes/syc-20350624
https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/atrial_fibrillation.htm
DIAGNOSING: The risk factors of AFib can include older age, heart disease, high blood pressure, thyroid disease, alcoholism, obesity, and family history. It is diagnosed often through EKGs, blood tests, halter monitors, stress tests, and X-rays. A doctor may order several tests before a diagnosis is made. Many people are unaware they have AFib and are only detected when a doctor is using a stethoscope during a physical examination. AFib is often treated through medications to control the hearts rhythm, blood thinning medicine to prevent blood clots, surgery, and healthy lifestyle changes to food and diet.
(Source:
https://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/atrial_fibrillation.htm
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/atrial-fibrillation/symptoms-causes/syc-20350624
NEW TECHNOLOGY: A new device, the Amulet LAA Occluder, is the first of its kind and is designed to help patients suffering with atrial fibrillation that cannot process blood thinners to prevent stroke. It is a small pouch that connects with the upper chamber on the left side of the heart. This is a region where blood clots can form, and if formed, travel to the brain and cause stroke. The device completed clinical trials and was approved by the Food and Drug Administration.
(Source:
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS REPORT, PLEASE CONTACT:
Wesley Roberts
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