title: Computational Modeling of Open-Irrigated Electrodes for Radiofrequency Cardiac Ablation Including Blood Motion-Saline Flow Interaction.
abstract: Radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA) is a routine treatment for cardiac arrhythmias. During RFCA, the electrode-tissue interface temperature should be kept below 80 °C to avoid thrombus formation. Open-irrigated electrodes facilitate power delivery while keeping low temperatures around the catheter. No computational model of an open-irrigated electrode in endocardial RFCA accounting for both the saline irrigation flow and the blood motion in the cardiac chamber has been proposed yet. We present the first computational model including both effects at once. The model has been validated against existing experimental results. Computational results showed that the surface lesion width and blood temperature are affected by both the electrode design and the irrigation flow rate. Smaller surface lesion widths and blood temperatures are obtained with higher irrigation flow rate, while the lesion depth is not affected by changing the irrigation flow rate. Larger lesions are obtained with increasing power and the electrode-tissue contact. Also, larger lesions are obtained when electrode is placed horizontally. Overall, the computational findings are in close agreement with previous experimental results providing an excellent tool for future catheter research.
authors.affiliation: BCAM - Basque Center for Applied Mathematics, Bilbao, Basque Country, Spain.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: González-Suárez
authors.affiliation: Biomedical Synergy, Electronic Engineering Department, Universitat Politècnica de València, València, Spain.
authors.forename: Enrique
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Berjano
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Jose M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Guerra
authors.affiliation: BCAM - Basque Center for Applied Mathematics, Bilbao, Basque Country, Spain.
authors.forename: Luca
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gerardo-Giorda
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000628:therapy*; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D017115:Catheter Ablation / Q000295:instrumentation*; D057785:Catheters; D003198:Computer Simulation; D004566:Electrodes; D022062:Electrophysiologic Techniques, Cardiac / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods; D004867:Equipment Design; D006321:Heart / Q000502:physiology; D006329:Heart Conduction System / Q000502:physiology / Q000601:surgery; D006801:Humans; D009038:Motion; D011312:Pressure; D011846:Radio Waves; D013696:Temperature