Heart Rhythm

Hearts should have normal rhythm to their beats, but when these beats are out of synch, it causes inefficient pumping of blood. Irregular heart arrhythmias occur when the electrical signals that coordinate the heart's beats do not work properly. This can cause beats that are too fast (tachycardia), or too slow (bradycardia). Tachycardias include atrial fibrillation (AFib), supraventricular tachycardia, ventricular fibrillation, and ventricular tachycardia (VT). Bradycardias include sick sinus syndrome and conduction block. Electrophysiology arrhythmia treatments include medications, life style changes, and the EP lab interventions of catheter ablation, and implantable pacemakers or defibrillators.

Technology that creates interactive holograms of the heart cleared by FDA
SentiAR's CommandEP interface facilitates 3D models of the heart, made possible through augmented reality.
Radiotherapy VT ablation linked to encouraging 5-year outcomes
"The goal is to treat patients with life-threatening VT in a safer, faster and better way," one researcher explained.
Medtronic streamlines MRI screening, scanning for patients with implanted cardiac devices
Medtronic launched its MRI Care Pathway, a new system that can streamline the process of completing MRI scans for patients with compatible cardiac devices.
Researchers receive $3.7M to attempt robotic heart surgery inside MRI scanner
The group—which includes engineers, cardiologist, radiologists and other specialists—will attempt to perform a robotic-controlled left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) on a patient inside an MRI scanner.
VIDEO: The expanding role of cardiac CT in electrophysiology
Harold Litt, MD, division chief of cardiothoracic imaging and director of the Center for Advanced CT Imaging Sciences at the Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania, explains the role of cardiac CT in EP procedures.

Technology that creates interactive holograms of the heart cleared by FDA

SentiAR's CommandEP interface facilitates 3D models of the heart, made possible through augmented reality.

October 16, 2023

Phillip Cuculich MD explains Noninvasive Cardiac Radiotherapy ablation for ventricular tachycardia as a late-breaking study at HRS 2023. #HRS2023

Radiotherapy VT ablation linked to encouraging 5-year outcomes

"The goal is to treat patients with life-threatening VT in a safer, faster and better way," one researcher explained.

June 2, 2023

Medtronic just launched its MRI Care Pathway, a new system that can streamline the process of completing MRI scans for patients with Medtronic MRI compatible cardiac devices.

Medtronic streamlines MRI screening, scanning for patients with implanted cardiac devices

Medtronic launched its MRI Care Pathway, a new system that can streamline the process of completing MRI scans for patients with compatible cardiac devices.

April 4, 2023

mixed reality LAAO Chase Western Reserve MRI. The group—which includes engineers, cardiologist, radiologists and other specialists—will attempt to perform a robotic-controlled left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) on a patient inside an MRI scanner.

Researchers receive $3.7M to attempt robotic heart surgery inside MRI scanner

The group—which includes engineers, cardiologist, radiologists and other specialists—will attempt to perform a robotic-controlled left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) on a patient inside an MRI scanner.

October 20, 2022

CT has been used for planning and procedural guidance in pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) for about 20 years. It shows the anatomy to the electrophysiologist. The EPs also can load the imaging into their EP mapping system. It also shows them the location of the esophagus and the phrenic nerve so they can avoid these during the procedures. #PVI #EPeeps

VIDEO: The expanding role of cardiac CT in electrophysiology

Harold Litt, MD, division chief of cardiothoracic imaging and director of the Center for Advanced CT Imaging Sciences at the Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania, explains the role of cardiac CT in EP procedures.

October 12, 2022

Illustration of a left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) procedure using a Watchman device. Image courtesy of Johns Hopkins Medicine. #LAA #LAAO

Pre-procedure CT imaging benefits LAA occlusion in Henry Ford study

There is not agreement among the top structural heart experts if CT is required for left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO), but a Henry Ford Hospital study shows it can improve outcomes.

August 5, 2022

A new artificial intelligence tool can detect heart disease on cardiovascular MRI scans in seconds with equal or superior precision as clinicians.

Cardiac MRI a powerful tool for predicting sudden cardiac death, arrhythmia after CIED implantation

The study's authors suspect their findings could improve patient selection for CIEDs.

February 17, 2022

Cloud-based imaging spinoff inHeart raises $4.2M for AI-based heart arrhythmia solution

It’s cloud software turns preoperative medical images into a 3D “digital twin” of the patient’s heart enabling providers to plan procedures and navigate instruments during surgery.

July 2, 2020

Around the web

Cardiovascular Business

AI improves CT assessments, boosts care for real-world heart patients

Automated AI-generated measurements combined with annotated CT images can improve treatment planning and help referring physicians and patients better understand their disease, explained Sarah Jane Rinehart, MD, director of cardiac imaging with Charleston Area Medical Center.

Cardiovascular Business

AI predicts cardiovascular risk during CT scans—no invasive tests or contrast required

Two advanced algorithms—one for CAC scores and another for segmenting cardiac chamber volumes—outperformed radiologists when assessing low-dose chest CT scans.

Radiology Business

Google teams with Bayer to address radiologist burnout via AI

"Gen AI can help tackle repetitive tasks and provide insights into massive datasets, saving valuable time," Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud, said Tuesday.