Cardiac Ablation Procedure Helps Berkeley Resident Manage AFib, Maintain an Active Lifestyle

Atrial fibrillation (often referred to as AFib) is the most prevalent type of irregular heartbeat, impacting approximately 2.5 million people in the United States. AFib occurs when the electrical impulses in the upper chambers of the heart (called the atria) become erratic, replacing the normal regular rhythm. This causes the atria to quiver instead of beating, leading to poor blood flow in these chambers and loss of synchrony between them. As a result, the pulse rate becomes fast and irregular. While AFib is not in and of itself dangerous, if left untreated, those suffering from irregular heartbeats are five times more likely to suffer a stroke. In addition, the condition can severely depreciate an individual's quality of life, causing heart palpitations, chronic fatigue and debilitating pain.

Berkeley resident Lewis Lubin is a 61-year-old married father of two and an avid athlete. He loves to take spin and Pilates classes, hike with his dog, and participates in various outdoor activities. Looking at Lewis, one would never know that heart conditions ran in his family, or that he suffered a stroke 20 years ago at the age of 40. His father had a history of heart attacks and passed away at 58. Thankfully, Lewis’ stroke was mild and he was able to quickly recover, but he had to check in with his cardiologist each year to monitor his heart.

In 2011, his cardiologist detected an irregular heartbeat and diagnosed Lewis with AFib. Lewis knew something was not right when his heart was constantly racing, and his activities – like hiking at higher elevations in the Northern California mountains – were a struggle for him. After his diagnosis, Lewis was put on three different medications to control his heart rate. In 2013, his wife read an article about cardiac ablation, a procedure that can correct heart rhythm problems like arrhythmias. Ablation uses catheters – long, flexible tubes inserted through a vein in the groin and threaded to the patient’s heart — to correct the structural problems that cause an arrhythmia.

Lewis met with Dr. Steven Hao at Sutter Pacific Medical Foundation in San Francisco, and learned that he would be a suitable candidate for the procedure. On New Year’s Eve in 2013, Lewis successfully underwent the procedure, quickly weaning off two of his prescription heart medications. He hopes to stop taking the last one, a blood thinner, by the end of this year.

The ablation procedure has had a great impact on Lewis’ life. His increased energy enables him to continue to successfully perform his job as an executive coach, and his heart rate has decreased during spin classes – even during the most grueling parts of his workouts. Lewis will be going back up to the mountains in Northern California to hike with his wife this summer, relishing the ability to endure the higher elevation without anxiety and fear about his health.

The Heart Rhythm Society (HRS) is raising awareness for AFib in the Bay Area this month through stories like Lewis’. To learn more about AFib and other heart conditions, please visit www.hrsonline.org.