Detection of Abnormal Cardiac Activity Using Principal Component Analysis–-A Theoretical Study

Electrogram-guided ablation has been recently developed for allowing better detection and localization of abnormal atrial activity that may be the source of arrhythmogeneity. Nevertheless, no clear indication for the benefit of using electrograms guided ablation over empirical ablation was established thus far, and there is a clear need of improving the localization of cardiac arrhythmogenic targets for ablation. In this paper, we propose a new approach for detection and localization of irregular cardiac activity during ablation procedures that is based on dimension reduction algorithms and principal component analysis (PCA). Using an $8times 8$ electrode array, our method produces manifolds that allow easy visualization and detection of possible arrhythmogenic ablation targets characterized by irregular conduction. We employ mathematical modeling and computer simulations to demonstrate the feasibility of the new approach for two well established arrhythmogenic sources for irregular conduction--spiral waves and patchy fibrosis. Our results show that the PCA method can differentiate between focal ectopic activity and spiral wave activity, as these two types of activity produce substantially different manifold shapes. Moreover, the technique allows the detection of spiral wave cores and their general meandering and drifting pattern. Fibrotic patches larger than 2 mm² could also be visualized using the PCA method, both for quiescent atrial tissue and for tissue exhibiting spiral wave activity. We envision that this method, contingent to further numerical and experimental validation studies in more complex, realistic geometrical configurations and with clinical data, can improve existing atrial ablation mapping capabilities, thus increasing success rates and optimizing arrhythmia management.