Microfabricated Electrode Arrays Suitable for Stimulation and Recording in Cardiac Electrophysiological Studies

Abstract

Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) caused by ventricular fibrillation is one of the most serious heart related problems in the United States today which is responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths per year. The goal of this research project, a collaborative approach between Auburn University and the medical school in University of Alabama at Birmingham is to study the mechanisms responsible for the occurrence of sudden cardiac arrest. Due to the inherent electrical nature of the heart, a strong understanding of the electrical activity during the working of the heart is necessary to find the mechanisms that lead to SCA. The approach of this project is to design and fabricate microelectrode arrays for the measurement of surface potentials in the heart tissue, which overcomes the limitations due to the spatial resolutions caused by the electrode arrays assembled manually using conductive wires. The microelectrode arrays are designed and fabricated in the electrical engineering department in Auburn University and the arrays are tested in the medical school at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. The approach used to design and fabricate the microelectrode arrays and the method of testing the arrays is included in the discussions. The results of the tests conducted on the microelectrode arrays support the use of this approach to be applied in the cardiac electrophysiological experiments.