A time-domain approach for the identification of atrial fibrillation drivers

Annu Int Conf IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2011:2011:5527-30. doi: 10.1109/IEMBS.2011.6091410.

Abstract

The localization of atrial fibrillation (AF) driver sources, characterized by rapid and regular electrical activity, is crucial for an effective ablation treatment. This work proposes a double-criteria approach for the identification of AF drivers based on a time-domain evaluation of atrial rate and AF organization. These two features are quantified by the measurement of atrial cycle length (ACL) and wave-similarity (WS). Based on ACL/WS formalism, AF drivers can be operatively defined as sites displaying electrical activity with high-rate and high-similarity (HR AND HS). The capability of ACL/WS analysis to identify AF driver sites and distinguish them from non-critical areas is shown in representative examples. The double-criteria evaluation for the identification of AF drivers, provided by our time-domain approach, might open new perspectives for the development of electrogram-guided ablation strategies in the single patient.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Algorithms*
  • Atrial Fibrillation / diagnosis*
  • Atrial Fibrillation / physiopathology*
  • Body Surface Potential Mapping / methods*
  • Diagnosis, Computer-Assisted / methods*
  • Electrocardiography / methods*
  • Heart Conduction System / physiopathology*
  • Humans
  • Reproducibility of Results
  • Sensitivity and Specificity