New to Coumadin - my first questions.

[corrineinwa]

I'm sorry but for some reason I missed this thread. I can tell you that while in A-fib the dosage is going to be different than when he is not in Afib. I know this from personal experience. I think it has some infulence as to how fast/slow it is beating, and because they are always changing the medicine to try to get him out of Afib.

Have they elaborated on what they are going to do to get him into a sinus rythm?

Just to update.

Peter had intermittent A.Fib prior to surgery but post-op, it became constant.

They tried shocking him but it wasn't successful.

Along with the Coumadin, he was put on Amiodarone and Metoprolol.

At his first check-up (8 days post-op), his surgeon suspected that he was in normal sinus rhythm and an EKG confirmed that.

Fingers crossed that this is permanent - time will tell.

 

[Ross]

Just to update.

Peter had intermittent A.Fib prior to surgery but post-op, it became constant.

They tried shocking him but it wasn't successful.

Along with the Coumadin, he was put on Amiodarone and Metoprolol.

At his first check-up (8 days post-op), his surgeon suspected that he was in normal sinus rhythm and an EKG confirmed that.

Fingers crossed that this is permanent - time will tell.

Amiodarone raises cain with INR too. It increases it, so if and when they take him off of it and depending on whether it resolves or not, he'll have INR dropping for a while after discontinuation of Amio. Hopefully at that point, he can skip the Coumadin too.

 

[corrineinwa]

Amiodarone raises cain with INR too. It increases it, so if and when they take him off of it and depending on whether it resolves or not, he'll have INR dropping for a while after discontinuation of Amio. Hopefully at that point, he can skip the Coumadin too.

OK - made a note of that too. Thank you Ross.

 

[olefin]

I do think that our age (I'm also 73) makes it easier to maintain a more stable INR since lifestyle, activity, etc. become more consistent and predictable. I have had NO change in dosage for over two years,

Dick, I must not got old enough for mine still jumps around.
In the last 2 years my dosage has changed 11 times. I'm 74.

But I blamed it on monthly testing. Since I've started home testing I've been a little high once but nothing like it would have been if I had waited a month to be retested.

Corrineinwa, my best to DH and you.