Finite element approximation of potential gradient in cardiac muscle undergoing stimulation

Depolarization and defibrillation events in cardiac muscle are considered to be closely related to the potential gradient existing in the myocardium during electrical shock. Therefore, a numerical technique of calculating the gradient from experimental data with minimal possible error is required. Simulation studies indicate that computing the gradient using the central difference formula or finite element approximation based on eight-node binomial elements is superior to other methods. However, if this method is used to calculate potential gradients from a 3$⇔$5$⇔$8 grid, large errors occur. A five-fold improvement has been achieved by taking advantage of the convergence resulting from decreasing mesh size and by identifying and eliminating gradients with excessive errors. The process outlined above is expected to calculate gradient values with root mean square error less than 10%. © 1988.

Duke Scholars

Author Wanda Krassowska Neu Biomedical Engineering