Is geometry or dynamics more important in arrhythmogenesis?
A.V. Holden (University of Leeds, UK), G. Halley (University of Leeds, UK)
and A.P. Benson (University of Leeds, UK)
Cardiac arrhythmias are a major cause of premature death. Cardiac virtual tissues (biophysically and anatomically detailed computational models) provide a practical means for investigating candidate mechanisms of cardiac arrhythmias, and evaluating drug actions at the tissue level. They take the form of high order, stiff, reaction diffusion systems with a single diffusing variable in an anisotropic, orthotropic, cardiac geometry. We obtain the conductance tensor from diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging, spatial heterogeneities from molecular mapping and tissue electrophysiology, and excitation dynamics from cellular electrophysiology, and illustrate arrhythmogenic mechanisms and explain pro-arrhythmogenic side effects of some type 1 anti-arrhythmics.