The porous media theory applied to radiofrequency catheter ablation

Purpose: Recently, the porous media theory has been successively proposed for many bioengineering applications. The purpose of this paper is to analyze if the porous media theory can be applied to model radiofrequency (RF) cardiac ablation. Design/methodology/approach: Blood flow, catheter and tissue are modeled. The latter is further divided into a fluid and a solid phase, and porous media equations are used to model them. The heat source term is modeled using the Laplace equation, and the finite element method is used to solve the governing equations under the appropriate boundary conditions and closure coefficients. Findings: After validation with available literature data, results are shown for different velocities and applied voltages to understand how these parameters affect temperature fields (and necrotic regions). Research limitations/implications: The model might require further validation with experiments under different conditions after comparisons with available literature. However, this might not be possible due to the experimental complexity. Practical implications: The improvement in predictions from the model might help the final user, i.e. the surgeon, who uses cardiac ablation to treat arrhythmia. Originality/value: This is the first time that the porous media theory is applied to RF cardiac ablation. The robustness of the model, in which many variables are taken into account, makes it suitable to better predict temperature fields, and damaged regions, during RF cardiac ablation treatments.