Computationally efficient model for simulating electrical activity in cardiac tissue with fiber rotation

Transmural rotation of cardiac fibers may have a large influence on the initiation, stabilization, and termination of several life threatening cardiac arrhythmias. However, three-dimensional modeling of reentry in cardiac tissue is computationally demanding, as a tissue on the order of centimeters in size must be used to sustain reentry and several seconds must be simulated. Numerical accuracy requires time steps on the order of microseconds and spatial discretization on the order of microns. Consequently, the resultant numerical systems are extremely large. In this article, a computationally efficient model of a three-dimensional block of cardiac tissue with fiber rotation is presented. Computational speedup is achieved by using a discrete cable model which allowed for system order reduction, and also by using a scheme for tracking the activation wave front which identified regions requiring integration with a small time step. Simulating 1.2 s of activity of the approximately 2 x 10(6) cells constituting a block measuring 2.0 x 4.0 x 0.29 cm was performed in 26 h. Effects of model parameters on performance are discussed. The effect of fiber rotation on the spread of electrical activity after point source stimulation and a cross shock protocol is clearly demonstrated.