Creating the first detailed 3D maps of the heart’s electrical conduction system

Detailed 3D modelling of human cardiac anatomy with emphasis on the conduction system using micro-computer tomography and mathematical modelling techniques - variation with ageing and heart failure

Models of human anatomy have been used for centuries to teach doctors and improve our understanding of health and disease. In recent decades, the treatment of heart defects in babies has been vastly improved thanks to detailed anatomical models developed by BHF Professor Robert Anderson. However, to this day, no detailed models exist of the complete cardiac conduction system, which sends electrical signals around the heart to control contraction. This system is vital and can go wrong in heart failure and ageing. Now, this multi-skilled team led by Dr Halina Dobrzynski plans to build detailed three-dimensional computer models of the cardiac conduction system. This includes the sinus node (the heart’s primary pacemaker) the atrioventricular node (the conduction gatekeeper between the atria and ventricles) and a network of fibres which rapidly spreads the electrical current across the ventricles. The researchers will use high-tech imaging called micro-computer tomography (micro-CT) combined with mathematical models, to create their 3D maps. Using a bank of human hearts donated for medical research, the team will map young hearts, old hearts, and hearts of people who had heart failure. They will begin to create a fantastic new resource of 3D maps that can be studied and compared to tell us more about the healthy and diseased cardiac conduction system. This could inform treatment decisions and inspire new treatments for decades to come.