Houston Man Suffers Afib From Drinking Ice Water During Workout

Franklin Aribeana, a Houston native, spoke to ABC 13 on Feb. 26 to spread awareness of a rare and dangerous gene mutation whose effects can be triggered by drinking ice water. In the interview, Aribeana told his story of discovering the medical condition.

He described one day he would “never forget.”

While working out at the gym, Aribeana sat down to take a break and drink some cold water. However, he soon after felt that something was wrong. 

“I’d gulp cold water. As I’m settling back down, I feel the double thud,” Aribeana said. The instance at the gym was not the first time that he felt the unusual trigger, as he’d been in the hospital more than 20 times over 15 years before he finally understood what was wrong with his body. 

The incident prompted a series of genetic tests, which revealed that Aribeana and both his sister and father had an uncommon gene mutation that coils trigger atrial fibrillation. Afib is a condition where the heart beats out of rhythm, and for Aribeana, it is triggered when cold water touches the vagus nerve in the back of his throat.

In tangent with the gene mutation, Aribeana’s vagus nerve — running from the brain to the chest and meant to regulate heartbeat — is highly sensitive.

Khashayar Hematpour, Aribeana’s doctor, described his symptom trigger as extremely rare, even among those with the gene mutation. 

“Pay attention to your symptoms,” Aribeana’s doctor advised. “It may cause subtle symptoms, some people may feel they are a little tired more than usual, may feel they are short of breath, have some chest pain.”

Following Aribeana’s incident at the gym, the Houston man was able to get heart surgery to attempt to correct the vagus nerve. Aribeana got an ablation procedure to “[cauterize] the connection between the vagus nerve and heart.” 

He has since made a full recovery, and although he remains on daily medication, he is hopeful that he won’t have any more hospital visits in the future. 

Aribeana wanted to leave people with one important piece of advice: “If you feel something, don’t be afraid to tell your parents. Don’t be afraid to tell your physician next time you go in for an appointment, or if it feels emergency-related enough, don’t be afraid to go to the emergency room.”