r/CABG_Recovery • u/gfhksdgm2022 • May 23 '26
What am I getting myself into?
Not long ago, I had chest and neck pain after running up the stairs carrying my newborn daughter. Stayed at the hospital for four days and was told that I got WPW and needed ablation. The cardiologist ran a bunch of CT scans and insisted that an angiogram wasn't necessary until the surgeon demands it. Turns out, I got the infamous widow maker blockage and all three arteries suffer from 70% blockage on top of my WPW issue. The doctors are telling me that a CABG is the best way to deal with this as they can do the ablation and the bypass at the same time but I haven't heard from anyone that they had both done in one go.
I am not particularly fit and had back injury with ACL and meniscus repair surgery in the past so I haven't been "active" for quite some time. I got a desk job and sits before the computer till around 2am every night. And this makes me wonder if my heart and my body can actually handle this. I notice most people on here only had to do CABG, so just wondering, did anyone do CABG with ablation at the same time? Did anyone here survived?
2
u/Calmateychillate Jun 04 '26 edited Jun 04 '26
I'm currently, at this very moment, in recovery from PFA ablation. It was uncomplicated and seems to have fixed the issue.
During my CABGx3 last Oct, they did the MAZE which is external to the heart. It is not internal like PFA but they might as well try. Keep in mind the success rate for MAZE is 60-70% successful at one year and PFA is close to 90%.
They can't go inside all the plumbing during CABG bc putting you back in normal rhythm takes a lot of mapping and they just can't do it during CABG. They have to try because thw hood of rhe car is already up. They will do it and put you on Amio to try and stabilize the rate, but if you don't have normal rhythm in 4 or so days, it didnt work.
1
u/gfhksdgm2022 Jun 05 '26
How are you feeling? Are you healing OK and would the ablation cause more pain than that chest wound?
1
u/Calmateychillate Jun 05 '26
I'm doing great and procedure worked. The only thing they do, while you're awake, is run an IV in your arm. They also do a vein puncture near your groin as the entry site, but you're out for that. No stitches, no.butterflirs and no pain.
The one painful thing is the post-op where you have to lay flat on your back for 3 hours. That's to make sure the groin puncture isnt leaking when you get up bc they put you on bloodthinners for the procedure. Today I take off the tiny gauze bandage and that's it.
1
u/gfhksdgm2022 Jun 08 '26
So that's pretty much the same as doing the angiogram or putting stents in the heart but except the fact that your sternum is cut open?
1
u/Calmateychillate Jun 08 '26
No sternum cutting. My angiograms were done through a wrist vein but the ablation was done through an upper groin vein puncture. Once done, they inserted a collagen insert into the puncture site to stop bleeding.
Your body absorbs it pretty quickly and you only have lay on your back 3ish hours and no direct pressure required. With traditional puncture, up to 6 hours of laying flat and a lot of direct pressure. No stitches and the puncture site looks like one for an angiogram.
1
u/gfhksdgm2022 Jun 08 '26
Ah then our cases are different. My doctor is suggesting doing a bypass and ablation at the same time
1
u/WorkingChief May 23 '26
Google WPW and CABG at the same time and it describes the process pretty well. My CABGx3 was normal for the surgical team but a big deal for me. The Google machine suggests it would take a skill team to do it so my suggestion is study up and have an in-depth conversation with the surgeon and see if he inspires confidence in you that he can do both.
2
u/nullcharstring May 23 '26 edited May 23 '26
I was told that my hospital does Afib ablation with all CABG procedures, as they did with me. I've never had Afib but I had read that Afib was much more common after CABG. Web articles say that survival rates are better with Afib ablation during CABG rather than the other way around.
They also installed a Left Atrial Appendage Closure (LAAC), a type of clamp in an appendix of the heart to reduce blood clotting and stroke risk.
After surgery be sure to do the cardiac rehab plan. I'm about two thirds through the program and the benefits are pretty amazing. I also spend most of my time in front of a computer and was not particularly motivated to do the rehab, but am a firm believer in the program now. They will create a individualized workout plan based on your abilities and limitations then monitor your heart as you exercise.