3D Electrical Activity Representation for Cardiac Mapping
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current medical systems face challenges in intuitively presenting electrical activity and sampling locations sampled by complex multi-electrode catheters, especially when continuous data acquisition is performed over extended periods, leading to instability and reduced utility of data due to catheter instability.
Innovation Solution
A medical system that provides a three-dimensional (3D) representation of the heart chamber with sampling-site markers indicating catheter positions, allowing users to select markers and update the display to show electrode positions, with differentiated marker presentation types based on identified electrical activity levels, such as focal or rotational activity, to enhance visualization and data interpretation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Quantity of substance
If continuous data acquisition is performed over extended periods, then more comprehensive electrical activity data is obtained, but catheter instability increases and data utility decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by continuously tracking catheter position and computing representative positions during the data acquisition phase. This preliminary tracking ensures that when data is later viewed or analyzed, the correct electrode positions are already associated with each electrical activity measurement, preventing confusion from catheter movement during extended procedures.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a virtual copy or representation of the catheter's electrical activity data that is independent of the physical catheter's position changes. By computing representative positions and storing them with the electrical activity data, the system creates a stable digital representation that maintains data utility even when the physical catheter becomes unstable.
2Quantity of substance
If complex multi-electrode catheters are used to sample electrical activity at multiple sites, then comprehensive electrical mapping is achieved, but data presentation complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the complex catheter data by computing and displaying representative positions for each electrode separately. Each electrode's electrical activity and position are processed and presented as distinct, manageable units on the display, allowing clinicians to analyze multiple sampling sites without being overwhelmed by the overall complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The system adds a spatial dimension to the data presentation by displaying representative positions on a two-dimensional display device. This transforms the complex three-dimensional catheter configuration and multiple electrode positions into a visual format that is easier to interpret, showing where each electrode sampled relative to the heart chamber anatomy.
3Adaptability or versatility
If catheter position changes during sampling, then flexibility in navigating heart chambers is improved, but accuracy of electrode position data decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary computation of representative positions during the sampling process itself, rather than attempting to correct for position changes after the fact. By continuously tracking and computing positions as data is acquired, the system maintains accurate position information even as the catheter moves to navigate different heart chambers.
Solution Approach 2:
The system embraces the dynamic nature of catheter movement by continuously updating representative positions rather than assuming fixed positions. The system adapts to position changes in real-time, computing new representative positions as the catheter moves, which maintains measurement precision despite the inherent flexibility and movement required for navigating complex heart chamber geometries.
Data Source
AI summary
In one embodiment, a medical system includes a catheter including electrodes, and configured to be inserted into a chamber of a heart and maneuvered among sampling sites to sample electrical activity, a display, and processing circuitry to receive signals provided by the catheter, and compute, for each sampling site, a sampling position of the catheter and respective electrode positions of the catheter electrodes, render to the display a 3D representation of the chamber including respective sampling-site markers indicating the computed sampling position of the catheter at respective ones of the sampling sites, receive a user input selecting one sampling-site marker, and update the 3D representation to include electrode markers indicating the respective electrode positions of the respective catheter electrodes while the catheter was sampling the electrical activity of the tissue at the sampling site corresponding to the selected sampling-site marker.