Quantitative techniques for analyzing high-resolution cardiac-mapping data

In high-resolution cardiac mapping, signals are simultaneously recorded from hundreds of electrodes in contact with the myocardium and then analyzed to reveal the underlying activation pattern. Activation mapping has a long history in both experimental and clinical cardiac electrophysiology and has also been used to study other organ systems. Much of the current emphasis in mapping technology is on data analysis-ways to extract useful information from the voluminous data stream-rather than on the acquisition of the data. Hence, in this article, the authors review the traditional method for analyzing and interpreting mapping data, isochronal mapping, and then report on additional techniques that have recently emerged. The authors focus on techniques applicable to quantifying the dynamics of complex tachyarrhythmias such as ventricular fibrillation (VF) and atrial fibrillation (AF).