Dynamic Voltage Mapping to Personalise the Ventricular Tachycardia Substrate

Ventricular tachycardia (VT) is a life-threatening heart rhythm disorder and one of the commonest causes of heart-related sudden death. It often affects people who have had a heart attack or other structural heart damage. VT occurs when abnormal electrical circuits develop within and around scar tissue in the heart. People at risk are usually offered an implantable cardiac defibrillator (ICD), a device that can detect VT and deliver a lifesaving shock. While effective, these shocks can be sudden, painful and distressing. Medications such as amiodarone can also help, but they are often unsuitable for long-term use due to their potential side effects on the liver, lungs and thyroid gland. An alternative is catheter ablation. Thin tubes (catheters) are threaded from a blood vessel in the groin to the heart, allowing the cardiologist to identify scar tissue and abnormal electrical circuits