Use of multielectrode basket catheters for mapping of cardiac arrhythmias

Abstract

The need for overcoming the limitations of the conventional mapping technique and recent technical progress have brought several new mapping techniques into the practice of clinical electrophysiology, among them mapping with multielectrode basket catheters. The multielectrode basket catheter represents a basket-shaped array of electrodes distributed evenly on linear support structures called splines. It provides simultaneous recordings of unipolar or bipolar electrograms within the heart chamber in which it is deployed. Experimental and clinical data provide information on the advantages of using basket catheters for mapping and ablation of atrial and ventricular arrhythmia. Reports of the available studies show that the mapping with a basket catheter is a safe procedure. The low resolution, the poor maneuverability, and the inability to make close contact with the whole endocardial surface due to a poor matching between the basket catheter electrode arrays and the heart chamber anatomy are considered as the most serious limitations of the currently available generation of the basket catheters. From the data available, it could be concluded that the complex or unstable arrhythmias might be the main indication for the use of multielectrode basket catheters in the electrophysiological studies.