Cardiac Conduction Path Overlay for Ablation Gap Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing cardiac ablation techniques face challenges in visualizing ablation gaps and determining remaining conduction paths due to visual clutter from numerous ablation tags, which hinders the physician's ability to accurately assess tissue damage and identify areas requiring further ablation.
Innovation Solution
A real-time visualization technique using the A* algorithm to calculate and overlay possible remaining conduction paths on an anatomical map, hiding ablation tags to reduce clutter, and allowing physicians to focus on necessary ablation areas.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If ablation tags are displayed on the anatomical map to mark ablation sites, then the physician can track ablation locations, but visual clutter increases making it difficult to identify ablation gaps and remaining conduction paths
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes ablation tags from the display after their information has been utilized. The system processes ablation tag data to identify block areas and conduction paths, then presents this processed information without the distracting tags, eliminating visual clutter while preserving essential diagnostic information
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces simulated conduction paths as an intermediary visualization layer between the raw ablation tag data and the physician's decision-making. These simulated paths translate complex tag information into intuitive visual guidance about remaining conduction, reducing the cognitive load of interpreting scattered tags
2Measurement precision
If ablation tags are displayed to show ablation coverage, then complete ablation assessment is possible, but the physician's ability to accurately assess tissue damage and identify gaps is hindered
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the manual visual inspection mechanism with an automated computational system. The system uses algorithms to process ablation tag locations, calculate block areas, and simulate conduction paths, substituting the physician's manual assessment effort with automated image processing and pathfinding algorithms
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces simulated conduction paths as an intermediary that bridges the gap between raw ablation data and clinical decision-making. These paths provide intuitive visual guidance about remaining conduction, making it easier for physicians to identify areas requiring further ablation without manually analyzing tag distributions
3Reliability
If numerous ablation tags are displayed to document complete ablation coverage, then comprehensive treatment tracking is achieved, but the physician must check large areas increasing procedure time
Solution Approach 1:
The patent performs preliminary computational processing of ablation tag data before presentation to the physician. The system pre-calculates block areas, pre-simulates conduction paths, and pre-identifies remaining conduction regions, so that when the physician views the display, the critical information is already organized and highlighted, eliminating the need to manually scan entire anatomical surfaces
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the manual scanning and assessment mechanism with automated computational pathfinding. The system uses algorithms to rapidly analyze ablation tag distributions, calculate tissue blockage, and simulate conduction, substituting time-consuming manual visual inspection with fast automated processing that maintains comprehensive assessment accuracy
Data Source
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AI summary
A method includes receiving an anatomical map of wall tissue of at least a portion of a cardiac chamber, the map superimposed with ablation tags. A nonconductive zone is defined around each ablation tag for at least some of the ablation tags, to calculate block areas. A starting point and an ending point markings on the map of a potential conduction flow are received from a suer. Using a search algorithm, one or more possible conduction flow paths are searched for, from the starting point to the ending point, the one or more existing paths taking into consideration the block areas. One or more flow paths found by the search algorithm are overlayed on the anatomical map. The overlayed anatomical map is presented to a user.