Key result
Simulated spatial inhomogeneity representing damaged cardiac cells results in T-wave inversion.
Why the study?
Connecting computational cellular modeling to macroscopic phenomenological curves such as the electrocardiogram is important for analyzing cardiovascular diseases.
Does spatial inhomogeneity in the diffusion coefficient cause T-wave inversion in a computational cardiac model?
Does spatial inhomogeneity in the diffusion coefficient cause T-wave inversion in a computational cardiac model?
A 1D computational cardiac model demonstrates that localized reduction in voltage diffusion, simulating scar tissue, can reproduce the clinical phenomenon of T-wave inversion on a pseudo-ECG.
The heart beats due to the synchronized contraction of cardiomyocytes triggered by a periodic sequence of electrical signals called action potentials, which originate in the sinoatrial node and spread through the heart's electrical system. A large body of work is devoted to modeling the propagation of the action potential and to reproducing reliably its shape and duration. Connection of computational modeling of cells to macroscopic phenomenological curves such as the electrocardiogram has been also intense, due to its clinical importancce in analyzing cardiovascular diseases. In this work we simulate the dynamics of action potential propagation using the three-variable Fenton-Karma model that can account for both normal and damaged cells through spatially inhomogeneous voltage diffusion coefficient. We monitor the action potential propagation in the cardiac tissue and calculate the pseudo-electrocardiogram that reproduces the R and T waves. The R wave amplitude varies according to a double exponential law as a function of the (spatially homogeneous, for an isotropic tissue) diffusion coefficient. The addition of spatial inhomogeneity in the diffusion coefficient by means of a defected region representing damaged cardiac cells, may result in T-wave inversion in the calculated pseudo-electrocardiogram. The transition from positive to negative polarity of the T-wave is analyzed as a function of the length and the depth of the defected region.
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Angelaki et al. (2023) studied Myocardial ischemia (simulated). Inhomogeneous voltage diffusion (simulated scar) vs. Homogeneous voltage diffusion (healthy tissue) was evaluated on T-wave inversion in calculated pseudo-ECG. Simulations using the three-variable Fenton-Karma model demonstrated that spatial inhomogeneity in the voltage diffusion coefficient, representing damaged cardiac cells, can result in T-wave inversion.
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