Is it risky to go to the gym as a person with wpw
Hi, I’m a 20-year-old male who was diagnosed with Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome at the age of 10 during a school screening. I underwent an ablation in 2017, but it was unsuccessful.
I didn’t have any further procedures after that because I had no symptoms until last July, when I experienced an episode of tachycardia after a basketball game. That made my family and me concerned.
Yesterday, I underwent another ablation, but unfortunately it was unsuccessful as well. According to my doctor, the reason both procedures failed is that my accessory pathway is located on the epicardial (outer) surface of my heart. Since both procedures were performed by accessing the heart through the femoral vein, they could only reach the inner surface of the heart, not the outer surface where the pathway is located.
Today, my doctor told me that they may consider another approach in the future. In the meantime, she prescribed aspirin and an antiarrhythmic medication and advised me not to go to the gym or do any strenuous exercise.
I was shocked because I’ve been playing basketball for about 10 years and have been going to the gym regularly for the past year. Other than the episode last July, I have never had any symptoms or episodes of tachycardia.
My question is this: although I understand that the significance and risks of WPW vary greatly from person to person, is avoiding strenuous exercise really that important in my situation? By “strenuous exercise,” I mean a typical push-pull-legs weight training routine, not competitive sports.
I’m asking because I’m concerned about the risks of the next procedure, but at the same time I’d really like to maintain an active and athletic lifestyle.