Cardiac mapping using non-gated MRI

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9713435-B2
Application number	US-201113191867-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 27, 2011
Priority date	Jul 27, 2011
Publication date	Jul 25, 2017
Grant date	Jul 25, 2017

Abstract

A method includes accepting a plurality of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) data points of a cardiac chamber, acquired over multiple phases of at least one cardiac cycle. A simulated surface of the cardiac chamber is constructed by processing the MRI data points. Measurements of a parameter, acquired at respective points on a surface of the cardiac chamber, are accepted from an intra-cardiac probe. The measurements are overlaid on the simulated surface constructed from the MRI data points, so as to produce a map of the parameter on the surface.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. An apparatus, comprising:
a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanner, which is configured to acquire a plurality of non-gated MRI data points of a cardiac chamber, acquired over multiple phases of at least one cardiac cycle;
an intra-cardiac probe comprising a position sensor configured to generate position signals used to determine position coordinates of a distal end of the intra-cardiac probe, the intra-cardiac probe configured to acquire parameter measurements of a parameter acquired at respective points on a surface of the cardiac chamber;
a display;
a control console which performs the steps of:
receiving the position signals from the position sensor,
determining position coordinates of the distal end of the intra-cardiac probe based on the position signals,
receiving the parameter measurements of the parameter acquired at respective points on the surface of the cardiac chamber by the intra-cardiac probe,
collecting the non-gated MRI data points of the cardiac chamber from the MRI scanner, and
transmitting the non-gated MRI data points; and

a processor operatively connected to the control console, the processor comprising a computer having tangible non-transitory computer-readable medium, in which program instructions are stored, which instructions, when read by the computer, cause the computer to:
(1) accept the non-gated MRI data points transmitted by the MRI module,
(2) identify a volume of the cardiac chamber containing the accepted non-gated MRI data points,
(3) construct a simulated surface of the volume and display on the display the simulated surface comprising a wall of the cardiac chamber,
(4) accept from the control console parameter measurements of a parameter acquired at respective points on the surface of the cardiac chamber by the intra-cardiac probe and position coordinates obtained by magnetic position sensors, where the position coordinates correspond to the parameters, and associating each parameter measurement with a respective point on the simulated surface based on the position coordinates of each respective point,
(5) producing an electrical map of electrical potential measurements of the surface of the cardiac chamber by overlaying the associated parameter measurements on the simulated surface of the volume,
(6) update the simulated surface on the cardiac chamber in real time based on the acquired MRI data points and displaying on the display.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to identify a subset of the non-gated MRI data points corresponding to the cardiac chamber, and to construct the simulated surface surrounding the identified subset.

3. The apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the processor is further configured to acquire user input indicating a point belonging to the subset, and to identify the subset based on the user input.

4. The apparatus according to claim 2 , wherein the processor is further configured to construct the simulated surface by applying a ball-pivoting process to the identified subset.

5. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the MRI scanner is configured to acquire the non-gated MRI data points in a region-of-interest around the intra-cardiac probe while the intra-cardiac probe is present in the cardiac chamber, and wherein the processor is configured to update the simulated surface in the region-of-interest based on the acquired non-gated MRI data points.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein the parameter comprises at least one parameter type selected from a group of types consisting of electrical potential on the surface, contact force applied by the intra-cardiac probe against the surface, impedance of the surface, relative propagation time of a cardiac signal, and an ablation parameter.

7. A computer software product, operated in conjunction with an intra-cardiac probe, a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) system and a display, the product comprising a tangible non-transitory computer-readable medium, in which program instructions are stored, which instructions, when read by a computer, cause the computer to:
(1) accept non-gated MRI data points transmitted by the MRI system,
(2) identify a volume of a cardiac chamber containing the accepted non-gated MRI data points,
(3) construct a simulated surface of the volume and display on the display, the simulated surface comprising a wall of the cardiac chamber,
(4) accept parameter measurements of a parameter acquired at respective points on the surface of the cardiac chamber by the intra-cardiac probe and position coordinates obtained by magnetic position sensors, where the position coordinates correspond to the parameters, and associating each parameter measurement with a respective point on the simulated surface based on the position coordinates of each respective point,
(5) producing an electrical map of electrical potential measurements of the surface of the cardiac chamber by overlaying the associated parameter measurements on the simulated surface of the volume,
(6) updated the simulated surface on the cardiac chamber in real time based on the acquired MRI data points and displaying on the display.

Assignees

• Govari Assaf
• Altmann Andres Claudio
• Biosense Webster Israel Ltd

Inventors

• Govari Assaf
• Altmann Andres Claudio

Classifications

• A61B5/055 Primary

  involving electronic [EMR] or nuclear [NMR] magnetic resonance, e.g. magnetic resonance imaging · CPC title

• A61B5/0422

  Human Necessities · mapped topic

• A61B5/287

  Holders for multiple electrodes, e.g. electrode catheters for electrophysiological study [EPS] · CPC title