Rate control during af using cellular intervention to modulate av node
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- US · United States
- Patent Type
- Applications(United States)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- MEDTRONIC INC
- Publication Date
- 2012-05-24
- Estimated Expiration
- Not applicable · inactive patent
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Abstract
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0001] The invention generally relates to cardiac arrhythmia control to affect a normal sinus rhythm. Specifically, the invention relates to the control of atrial fibrillation using biological intervention.BACKGROUND
[0002] The heart consists of several distinct regions, each with its unique electrophysiological characteristics and functions. Specifically, cardiac activity is managed by highly specialized cells that trigger polarization and depolarization of the heart muscle to provide natural intrinsic pacing. While the sino atrial (SA) node is the primary pacemaking unit of the heart, the atrio-ventricular (AV) node acts as a gatekeeper or valve between the atria and ventricles and controls ventricular response to supraventricular activation. The valve function of the AV node arises from cells that have longer postrepolarization refractoriness and very low excitability, which limit the maximum number of impulses that can traverse to the ventricles. AV node lacks...