The start of a long health journey

For Alan, who’s now in his 50s, problems with his heart had been ongoing for years. They started in 2019, when he suffered a transient ischemic attack, often called a “mini stroke”. While Alan’s symptoms only lasted a short time, it was a frightening experience for Alan, so he went to his local doctor. At the time, they were unable to find the exact cause of his mini stroke. However, the experience motivated Alan to improve his overall health. “Because they couldn’t diagnose my symptoms, I wasn’t offered a treatment. But I still wanted to take action, so I decided to get fitter and I lost a lot of weight.”

Despite his lifestyle changes, Alan started to experience other worrying symptoms. He felt short of breath, dizzy and was having palpitations. “I literally couldn’t stand up. I’ve never felt anything like it,” Alan says. These were caused by atrial fibrillation (AF), a heart rhythm disorder that causes an abnormal heartbeat. Over the coming months, Alan experienced several similar episodes, so he decided to seek an expert opinion. Following a recommendation he’d been given, he booked an appointment with Dr Martin Lowe at The Harley Street Clinic. 

At his appointment, Alan discussed his symptoms with Dr Lowe, and together they decided to move forward with a cardioversion to treat Alan’s AF. This is a non-surgical procedure that uses a low energy shock to reset an abnormal heart rhythm. To help keep his heart rhythm under control, Alan also began medication.

Inspired to make a change

For a while, this intervention helped. But soon after, Alan experienced more episodes of AF, followed by another mini stroke. “I’d put on a bit of weight and maybe wasn’t as fit as I could have been,” says Alan. “So at that point, I decided to stop drinking, lose weight and exercise more.” Alan also got back in touch with Dr Lowe for further advice. Dr Lowe explained the link between Alan’s heart condition and his mini strokes – the irregular heartbeats caused by AF can form blood clots that cause a mini stroke.

At this point, Dr Lowe recommended a different approach to Alan’s AF – an ablation. This is a minimally invasive procedure where a catheter is guided through an incision in the leg up to the heart. Once it reaches the heart, the catheter uses radiofrequency pulses to generate heat energy, disrupting the heart tissues that cause the irregular rhythms.

While it could treat his recurring problems and potentially avoid another mini stroke in the future, Alan was unsure whether he wanted a surgical procedure. Listening to what Alan wanted, Dr Lowe worked with him to develop a treatment plan that suited his needs and would aim to prevent further AF episodes without a surgical intervention. Together, they decided to manage the risk through lifestyle factors. To help him along his weight loss journey, Dr Lowe suggested that Alan start weight loss drugs. These had a big impact on Alan’s weight – in the year since starting them, he lost over six stone, and he didn’t experience any episodes of AF.

A turning point for Alan

But soon enough, his cardiac symptoms returned. “I wasn’t drinking, I’d lost six stone, but I went into AF again,” Alan says. While Dr Lowe again advised him to have the ablation, Alan was still apprehensive about surgery and wanted to continue using heart medication to manage his condition. But another episode of AF while he was on holiday proved to be a pivotal turning point. “I realised I couldn’t go on like that. I had to get it sorted.” 

The next day, Alan called Dr Lowe to arrange his ablation treatment. “Dr Lowe convinced me that this new pulsed field ablation would be the way forward,” he says. “I trusted him, and I trusted his knowledge.” Rather than using heat energy, pulsed field ablation is a new technology that uses brief, high-energy electrical pulses to disrupt the heart tissue.

Taking the surgical option

Alan’s ablation would be carried out using Affera, a state-of-the-art ablation system. This new system can produce an accurate map of the heart and carry out the ablation through a single catheter – previously, mapping and ablation would require two different catheters. 

A few weeks after returning from his holiday, Alan visited The Harley Street Clinic for his procedure. He was nervous, but the support of Dr Lowe and the team left Alan feeling assured he was in good hands.

Feeling the benefits of the latest technology

An ablation using Affera is usually a day-case procedure, but for reassurance, Alan opted to stay the night in the hospital and was cared for by the nursing team before returning home the next day. Two weeks later, Alan had a follow-up with Dr Lowe, who told him he was able to reduce his heart medication thanks to the benefits of pulsed-field ablation with Affera. The overall recovery time after an Affera procedure is up to six months, but Alan had no issues at all in the months after his treatment. 

Alan’s health improvements have come as a huge relief. “As soon as they went in, they could see what the problem was,” he says. “Dr Lowe is sure he’s fixed it, and that’s good enough for me!” And these improvements aren’t just from his cardiac treatment. “My weight loss is all thanks to Dr Lowe, he’s done so much for me over the last 20 months. It’s down to him that I am where I am now.”

Click here to find out more about ablation procedures at HCA UK, or click here to book an appointment with Dr Lowe.