Phase synchrony reveals organization in human atrial fibrillation

It remains unclear if human atrial fibrillation (AF) is spatially nonhierarchical or exhibits a hierarchy of organization sustained by sources. We utilize activation times obtained at discrete locations during AF to compute the phase synchrony between tissue regions, to examine underlying spatial dynamics throughout both atria. We construct a binary synchronization network and show that this network can accurately define regions of coherence in coarse-grained in silico data. Specifically, domains controlled by spiral waves exhibit regions of high phase synchrony. We then apply this analysis to clinical data from patients experiencing cardiac arrhythmias using multielectrode catheters to simultaneously record from a majority of both atria. We show that pharmaceutical intervention with ibutilide organizes activation by increasing the size of the synchronized domain in AF and quantify the increase in temporal organization when arrhythmia changes from fibrillation to tachycardia. Finally, in recordings from 24 patients in AF we show that the level of synchrony is spatially broad with some patients showing large spatially contiguous regions of synchronization, while in others synchrony is localized to small pockets. Using computer simulations, we show that this distribution is inconsistent with distributions obtained from simulations that mimic multiwavelet reentry but is consistent with mechanisms in which one or more spatially conserved spiral waves is surrounded by tissue in which activation is disorganized.