Atrial fibrillation, or AFib, is a condition that affects millions of people each year. AFib is the most common type of heart arrhythmia and can be alarmingly serious, as it increases the risk of stroke by five times and doubles the risk of heart-related deaths. Many people don’t even know they have it. Some have no symptoms at all, while in others, symptoms are intermittent and misunderstood.
The need for awareness is growing, with a recent study by the CDC projecting a huge spike in cases by 2030—over 12 million, doubling the cases since 2010.
Pensacola resident Carolyn Caplinger, 69, understands the dangers of AFib very well. For about 30 years, Carolyn experienced symptoms like heart racing and dizziness, but they gradually worsened until she sought a checkup. About six years ago, she was diagnosed with uncontrolled AFib by her physician, Dr. Asim Ahmed, an electrophysiologist and cardiologist with Ascension Sacred Heart Pensacola…