Multimodal imaging for cardiac mapping
Mapping and elimination (ablation) of an abnormal cardiac rhythm requires an understanding of normal and abnormal anatomy and physiology, and monitoring of the interventional catheters and ablation energy’s effects. Cardiac electrophysiology has evolved enormously from the era of X-ray fluoroscopy and printed thermal paper recordings of electrical signals. Multimodal imaging seeks to enhance understanding of the arrhythmia and its treatment by deploying two or more modalities simultaneously or sequentially. In view of the complementary nature with regard to benefits and risks of various modalities, it is often advantageous to deploy multimodal imaging in electrophysiological procedures. The chapter highlights some of the principles and presents some examples of the process. The risks and consequences vary for different imaging modalities. Intraprocedural fluoroscopy or preprocedural computed tomography or radionuclide ventriculography, myocardial scintigraphy, and positron emission tomography scans deliver ionizing radiation.
