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Parasystole and the Pacemaker Problem

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Theory of Heart

Part of the book series: Institute for Nonlinear Science ((INLS))

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Abstract

In parasystole there is a competition between two independent cardiac pacemakers, the normal sinus rhythm and the abnormal ectopic rhythm, for the control of the heart. The physiological mechanism for parasystole has been translated into a mathematical model. Theoretical analysis of the model leads to a number of testable predictions concerning the occurrence of normal and ectopic beats in patients with parasystole. Tests of these predictions confirm the applicability of the model. The mathematical analysis uses approaches derived from number theory and nonlinear mathematics.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Département de Mathématiques et de Statistique and Centre de Recherches Mathématiques, Université de Montéal, Quebéc, Canada

    Jacques Bélair

  2. Department of Applied Mathematics, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA

    Marc Courtemanche

  3. Department of Physiology, McGill University, Quebéc, Canada

    Leon Glass

Authors
  1. Jacques Bélair
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  2. Marc Courtemanche
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  3. Leon Glass
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physiology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, H3G 1Y6, Canada

    Leon Glass

  2. Department of Engineering Science, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand

    Peter Hunter

  3. Department of Applied Mechanics and Engineering Science—Bioengineering, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, 92093, USA

    Andrew McCulloch

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© 1991 Springer-Verlag New York, Inc.

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Bélair, J., Courtemanche, M., Glass, L. (1991). Parasystole and the Pacemaker Problem. In: Glass, L., Hunter, P., McCulloch, A. (eds) Theory of Heart. Institute for Nonlinear Science. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-3118-9_15

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-3118-9_15

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4612-7803-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4612-3118-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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