3D Data Used to Visualize Cardiac Conductive System

They then used X-Ray scanners to make 3D images, some of which were so detailed that they showed the boundaries between individual heart cells, and the cellular layout in the tissue.

Professor Jonathan Jarvis, at the LJMU School of Sport and Exercise Sciences, said, "The 3D data makes it much easier to understand the complex relationships between the cardiac conduction system and the rest of the heart. We also use the data to make 3D printed models that are really useful in our discussions with heart doctors, other researchers and patients with heart problems. New strategies to repair or replace the aortic valve must therefore make sure that they do not damage or compress this precious tissue. In future work we will be able to see where the cardiac conduction system runs in hearts that have not formed properly. This will help the surgeons who repair such hearts to design operations that have the least risk of damaging the cardiac conduction system."

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