Computer Simulation of Clinical Electrophysiological Study

Abstract

Computer simulation is an important method for the basic researches of cardiac electrophysiology to prove the mechanisms and hypotheses of cardiac arrhythmias by reproducing body surface electrocardiograms. In this research, we extend the researches of heart models to the computer simulation of clinical electrophysiological study (EPS) as a clinical application of heart models. Through setting the standard EPS pacing protocols, including extrastimuli and incremental pacing in the heart models, we simulated the corresponding excitation propagations in the heart and the intracardiac electrograms that would be measured with catheter electrodes. Examples of complicated cases observed during EPS are reproduced in this research, including the induction of a Wenckebach pattern, the induction and termination of supraventricular tachycardia due to the reentry loop of antidromic atrioventricular reentrant tachycardia for the Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) syndrome (Type A), and the localization of an accessory pathway for the WPW syndrome (Type A). This study demonstrates an application of whole-heart modeling and computer simulation to clinical EPS.