Model Order Reduction of Finite Element Model of Pacemaker Electrode

It is commonly observed that in order to understand various biological phenomenon and operation of medical devices, mathematical modelling is done that usually give rise to large order dynamical system. Such large order dynamical system becomes computationally heavy and creates storage problems too. These problems can be tackled if the order of large order system is reduced such that the input/output characteristics are nearly preserved. The reduced order models make the simulation possible and their control practically feasible. This paper shows reduction of pacemaker electrode problem that forms a large order system. A pacemaker electrode forms a part of an artificial pacemaker that is actually responsible for transmitting the electrical impulses to the heart tissue and regulates the beating of the heart. Being very large order problem, it gets difficult to carry out multiple simulations to find out optimum design parameters such as the electrode tip radius and the input excitation that plays an important role in current and voltage distribution on and around the pacemaker electrode. Reduced order model presented in this paper enables multiple simulations at reduced computational cost.