There is interesting new information in an article today regarding the Pope’s atrial fibrillation and strokes. It reports that he had a bleeding stroke in 1991, along with a stroke in 2005. The bleeding stroke could certainly explain why he was refusing anticoagulants.
Even more interestingly, the article also reports that he had a pacemaker implanted years ago. With chronic atrial fibrillation, and a pacemaker, does that mean he might have had an AV node ablation? (Just a guess on my part, no fact.)
We know that staying in afib long term puts one at much greater risk of a stroke. Even the Pope is not immune to that seeming law of nature.
For more information on AV node ablation, see our earlier article on AV Node Ablation: Why You Shouldn’t Have It.
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