Summary
By appropriate placement of two electrodes on the epicardiac surface of Langendorff-perfused hearts, His-bundle and preatrial signals can be recorded by the surface electrogram (S-ECG). These signals are difficult to detect because of their low amplitude of a few microvolts. To improve the monitoring of these low-level potentials we studied the His-bundle spike as detected by intracardiac electrodes and by epicardial records (S-ECG) and compared these signals in the time and frequency domain. The frequency spectra of these cardiograms were used to develop appropriate filters and high-gain amplifiers for a continuous monitoring of the His-bundle signal from the epicardiac surface. By means of such a monitoring system, high-frequency components of preatrial activities could be resolved also. The time coincidence of these spikes to the simultaneously recorded intraatrial electrogram from electrodes positioned near the sinus node and near the His-bundle is demonstrated. Hence, the early atrial signals likely yield information about sinoatrial conduction. Application examples of monitoring His-bundle signals and preatrial signals in a beat-to-beat manner are described also for various conduction blocks or arrhythmias. With this monitor the evaluation of characteristic parameters of the conduction system of the heart like HV-, AH- and A'H-time, and likely, SACT can easily be performed for every heartbeat on a digital oscilloscope with low resolution or a two-channel chart recorder. Small and intact hearts can be used with this system to detect intracardiac low-level potentials during the heart beat.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Berbari EJ, Collins SM, Arzbaecher R (1986) Evaluation of esophageal electrodes for recording His-Purkinje activity based upon signal variance. IEEE Trans Biomed Eng 33:922–928
Berbari EJ, Collins SM, Salu Y, Arzbaccher R (1983) Orthogonal surface lead recordings of his-purkinje activity: Comparison of actual and simulated waveforms. IEEE Trans Biomed Eng 30:160–167
Bleeker WK, MacKaay AJC, Masson-Pévet M, Bouman LN, Becker AE (1980) Functional and morphological organization of the rabbit sinus node. Circ Res 46:11–22
Boineau JP, Schuessler RB, Mooney ChR, Wylds AC, Miller CB, Hudson RD, Boremans JM, Brockus ChW (1978) Multicentric origin of the atrial depolarization wave: The pacemaker complex. Relation to dynamics of atrial conduction, P-wave changes and heart rate control. Circulation 58; 6:1036–1048
Boineau JP, Miller CB, Schuessler RB, Rocske WR, Autry LJ, Wylds AC, Hill DA (1984) Activation sequence and potential distribution maps demonstrating multicentric atrial impulse origin in dogs. Circ Res 54:332–347
Cramer M, Siegal M, Bigger JTh jr, Hoffman BF (1977) Characteristics of extracellular potentials recorded from the sinoatrial pacemaker of the rabbit. Circ Res 41; 6:292–300
Gomes JAC, Kang PS, El-Sherif N (1982) The sinus node electrogram in patients with and without sick sinus syndrome: Techniques and correlation between directly measured and indirectly estimated conduction time. Circulation 66:864–873
Grant AO, Kirkorian G, Benditt DG, Strauss HC (1979) The estimation of sinoatrial conduction time in rabbit heart by constant atrial pacing technique. Circulation 60:597–604
Hariman RJ, Krongrad E, Boxer RA, Bowman FO, Malm JR, Hoffman BF (1980) Methods for recording electrograms of the sinoatrial node during cardiac surgery in man. Circulation 61:1024–1029
Hofer E (1984) Messung der Erregungsausbreitung an der Purkinje-Faser des Herzens zur Analyse von intraventrikulären Rhythmus- und Leitungsstörungen. Thesis, Technische Universität Graz, Austria
Koidl B, Tritthart HA (1986) Inhibition of the fast Na-current in cardiac muscle and isolated myocytes of guinea pigs and rats by LG 83-6-05. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 332 (Suppl):R50
Masuda MO, Paes de Carvalho A (1975) Sinoatrial transmission and atrial invasion during normal rhythm in the rabbit heart. Circ Res 37:414–421
Opthof T, de Jonge B, Mackaay AJC, Bleeker WK, Masson-Pevet M, Jongsma HJ, Bouman LN (1985) Functional and morphological organization of the guinea-pig sinoatrial node compared with the rabbit sinoatrial node. J Mol Cell Cardiol 17:549–564
Spach MS, Dolber P (1986) Relating extracellular potentials and their derivatives to anisotropic propagation at a microscopic level in human cardiac muscle. Circ Res 58:356–371
Stark G, Huber U, Hofer E, Tritthart HA (1987) Continuous ECG measurements of intracardiac activity from the surface of Langendorff-perfused guinea pig hearts. Basic Res Cardiol 82:437–444
Stark G, Stark U, Tritthart HA (1989) Assessment of the conduction of the cardiac impulse by a new epicardiac surface and stimulation technique (SST-ECG) in Langendorff perfused mammalian hearts. J Pharmacol Meth 21:195–209
Stark U, Nagl S, Tritthart HA (1989) The influence of propafenon and LG 83-6-05 on the cardiac refractoriness. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 339 (Suppl):R57
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Preliminary results have been published at the III Simposion Internacional de Ingeneria Biomedica, Madrid 1987 and at the World Congress on Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, San Antonio, Texas 1988.
Supported by a grant of the Austrian Research Fund (FFW, project number P7141).
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Hofer, E., Stark, U., Stark, G. et al. Detection and continuous monitoring of intracardiac low-level potentials from the surface of the Langendorff-perfused heart. Basic Res Cardiol 85, 198–208 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01906972
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01906972